


attention!

by youwereamazing



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: 3RACHA as a team of superheroes, Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Attempt at Humor, Enemies to Lovers, Fight Scenes, Fights, M/M, Slow updates I'm sorry, Swearing, Will add more tags as I go, chan is oblivious af, kind of but not really, no explicit content but chan does spend a good amount of time thirsting over minho, other idols and groups are mentioned, this is very ridiculous and over the top sometimes, update: mingyu is chans new best friend, update: theres more plot than i expected
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-11
Updated: 2020-05-22
Packaged: 2021-02-27 14:42:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 28,431
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22118851
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/youwereamazing/pseuds/youwereamazing
Summary: Lee Know laughed. It was the most endearing thing Chan had ever heard, but he tried to shake that thought off quickly. He was the leader of 3RACHA, the most talked about team of superheroes. He was not supposed to find the laugh of a villain endearing.Chan is a superhero shit at hiding his secret identity and Minho just really wants to kick his ass
Relationships: Bang Chan/Lee Minho | Lee Know
Comments: 127
Kudos: 174





	1. rob a bank

**Author's Note:**

> This has been sitting around for months... so it's time to finally put it out bc I'm honestly proud of myself. I hope you enjoy it! Please give me feedback, I would appreciate that a lot.
> 
> in case anyone is interested, [here](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/72qVV3TYROL7oOGUbAzqh4?si=Xap6ObrWQC2SteqS69BgKA) is the playlist i listen to while writing:

“CB97 IN DA BUILDING!” Chan yelled to announce his arrival.

His voice was swallowed out by the loud screams of the bystanders. No one had noticed his presence yet. Their attention was fixed on the intense fight that was going on in the middle of the street, a lot of them filming it with their phones, some cheering as if they were at a sports event. Chan should be used to that behaviour, but it was still weird to him how people treated something potentially dangerous going on 10 meters in front of their noses the same way they would treat a drama on TV. Being weirded out didn’t stop Chan from looking up the memes and thirst tweets that flooded the internet after all their public appearances, though.

Chan quickly tried to assess the situation. From Gowon’s message, he knew that there had been an attempted robbery at a bank, something that happened quiet frequently. As always, they had called 3RACHA for help and their self-proclaimed assistant Gowon had sent them an alarm. And now here they were, his two teammates caught up in a brutal match in the middle of the street.

SpearB was just a few steps away from Chan’s current position, aggressively fighting against someone dressed mainly in dark greys and black. The stranger’s face was hidden by a Sith Lord worthy mask, but the rest of his outfit looked like day to day clothes, tight black jeans, a grey hoodie and Vans. The fight seemed surprisingly balanced, unexpected for Chan because SpearB was a literal beast usually dominating over all his opponents.

There were two reasons Chan had chosen SpearB for his team: his super strength and intimidating aura. He blamed the latter partially on the black armoured suit that perfectly highlighted his biceps and broad shoulders, but it was also due to the confident way he moved. Usually, fights with him didn’t last long. Chan liked to describe him as the Thor of their group, just that he preferred fighting with his fists (and entire body) over using any weapons.

J.One was fighting off two opponents on the other side of the street. Chan should be used to the talents of his teammates, but he still got shocked seeing them fight sometimes, especially with J.One. He was so very different in their team meetings, always loud and playful, but never lacking professionality when needed. During missions, he was unarguably their sharpest weapon due to his versatility. His body was extremely flexible and one of his biggest advantages over any opponent was his speed. Inside and out, he was a bit like 3RACHA’s Spiderman.

Then there was Chan, better known under his superhero alias CB97. He liked to think of himself as Iron Man, even though he knew that comparison was lacking. Yeah, he had used up a lot of his money on materials and research for the perfect suit, but it couldn’t keep up with Tony’s. Much to Chan’s disappointment, it couldn’t even fly. However, he also compensated for the fact that he didn’t have any superpowers with his money and brains. His fighting style was mainly based on what he had picked up studying different martial arts and all the nice little extras his suit had to offer.

Despite his lack of abilities, Chan had brought 3RACHA together, hand-picked SpearB and J.One after seeing them in action. The other two had voted him as the team leader, so organizing their missions and making sure no one found out about their real identities were his biggest responsibilities. Well, no one who saw the three young men outside of their suits would ever suspect them to secretly be superheroes, anyways, but it was important to be careful in this industry.

Chan took a moment to figure out where he was needed the most. J.One was fighting two people, so that was the obvious choice, but he was handling it well. They were both dressed in black and greys, just like the one fighting SpearB, also wearing similar masks on their faces. Judging from what he witnessed so far, they were rather inexperienced fighters, their moves seemed a bit hesitant, almost as if they were holding back.

He tried to recognize what kind of people they were, but he had never seen the masks they were wearing before. That pretty much ruled out the possibility that they belonged to one of the big gangs and groups that 3RACHA had managed to antagonize in the past. Judging from their not very professional looking equipment, Chan assumed that they were amateurs, new to the business.

One thing he did notice was that they had very distinct ways of fighting. Their moves were smooth, even elegant. The longer he watched the fights, the more fascinated he was by it. Especially the one SpearB was up against caught Chan’s attention. He was effortlessly moving through the air, his hits clear and powerful. Chan had never seen anything like it, so violent yet so beautiful, like some twisted sort of dance. He managed to escape most of SpearB’s punches and attacks, quickly ducking or jumping out of reach. The way he fought made it look like he was creating art with his body.

“Are you just gonna stare or are you gonna help?” SpearB suddenly called him out, his yelling way too loud in Chan’s earpiece. “Can you go help J.One?”

“He doesn’t need my help, “ Chan replied, still too caught up in watching SpearB’s opponent. “Do you need a hand?”

“I got this, ” SpearB said while blocking a particularly strong hit. Chan had no doubt in that, but he wanted to help. Or rather, he wanted to fight the guy alone, he didn’t even mind that he would probably get hit a few times because he was too distracted admiring his movements to actually do anything. He liked a good challenge, though.

“You go help J.One, I’ll take over here, “ he announced, stepping closer towards the two fighters.

“I got this, “ SpearB just repeated, starting another attack instead of retreating from the fight to let Chan take over. Chan’s rationality stepped up and told him to go help J.One instead of pointlessly arguing with SpearB. It would be childish to insist on taking over this fight just because he found the stranger’s fighting style fascinating.

To Chan’s surprise, the opponent stopped, taking a step back to avoid SpearB’s kicks. He turned around to face him and cheerfully announced: “Finally, CB97! Let’s fight!”

SpearB and Chan shared a confused look. “I’ll go help J.One, “ SpearB hesitantly said before he left the two alone.

As soon as SpearB was gone, the guy continued talking. “I usually don’t fight people weaker than me, but I’ll make an exception for you today because you asked for it.”

“How do you know I’m weaker than you?” Chan asked, stretching his body a bit to get ready for what was about to come. He activated his suits protective features and was just about to turn on the offensive mode, but he hesitated. Did he really want to win this fight because he had the money to buy the better equipment or did he want to win because of his skills? He decided that the former would give him a greater sense of satisfaction. Plus, he honestly felt like he could learn a thing or two from this guy.

“Maybe I’ve seen you fight before, “ he answered, giving Chan a quick once-over. Then, without any other warning, he attacked.

Chan wasn’t prepared, he stumbled back when the fist hit his face. His suit did soften the blow, but not enough to save Chan from all the pain. “Fuck, “ he cursed instinctively. 

“So you’re the great CB97, I see.” The other guy was now right in front of him, way too close. Not even half a minute into the fight and Chan had broken one of his most important rules: always keeping the opponent more than an arm length away. Chan was close enough to see the eyes behind the mask, as well as the sparkle of excitement in them. That should scare him, but that in that moment it only fuelled his interest and will to win.

“And you are?” Chan knew that he should bring some distance between them, he should bring up his guards, prepare for a counterattack, but he didn’t. Even the pain felt secondary right now compared to the burning curiosity and fascination the boy stirred inside of him.

“I’m Lee Know.”

“That’s a stupid name for a villain.”

Lee Know laughed. It was an unexpected sound, completely out of place. Not at all what Chan would have expected. Instead of the dark and derisive laughter he would have imagined, it was bright and bubbly. In any other situation, Chan would have had to laugh as well just because it was one of those laughs that immediately made other people want to join in.

It was the most endearing thing Chan had ever heard, but he tried to shake that thought off quickly. He was the leader of 3RACHA, the most talked about team of superheroes. He was not supposed to find the laugh of a villain endearing.

“That’s a bold statement coming from someone who calls himself CB97, “ Lee Know said once he had stopped laughing.

“What’s wrong with CB97?”

“It sounds like you’re some amateur SoundCloud rapper, not part of the famous _hero_ group.”

Chan avoided calling himself or his team heroes, he preferred it with the suffix ‘super’ because they were _super,_ at least SpearB and J.One. He didn’t view himself as a hero, though. He was merely someone who wanted to do good and help people in need. “I don’t like that word.”

“Hero? Well, I don’t like the word villain, “ Lee Know replied, finally stepping back, leaving Chan some air to breathe. “Can we fight now or ...?” He didn’t finish his sentence with words, instead he let his fist continue. 

Again, Lee Know’s punch caught him off guard. He only hit his shoulder and there was a lot less force behind it than the first time, so Chan quickly recovered from it, barely swaying back a bit. Still, his confidence was faltering because of it. “That was mean.”

“You called me a villain. Villains are supposed to be mean.” Somehow, Lee Know had come closer during the attack. “And I kind of gave you a warning.”

“Warning? That wasn’t a warning!” Chan knew he couldn’t let himself get distracted by his talking again, so he tried to focus more on the way he was moving, waiting for a hint that another attack was coming.

“What do you want me to do? Yell ‘Attention!’ every time before I hit you?” Lee Know got into position yet again, but Chan had his arms up to block him this time.

“Finally!” Lee Know seemed satisfied. “Now we are getting somewhere.”

Chan rolled his eyes. “Are you that desperate to fight me?”

“I’m that desperate to beat your ass, yes”

“To get your ass beaten, you mean.” Chan’s competitive side was getting to him now. Lee Know may be a fascinating guy with a cute laugh, but it was time to show him how powerful CB97 really was.

Chan learned that Lee Know’s wasn’t only good at attacking out of nowhere, he was strong on the defence part as well. Even though Chan tried his usually successful tricks to get through to him, he managed to block them all. Even the CB97 kick, his signature move that was pretty much always an immediate K.O., didn’t work on Lee Know. It was supposed to be a surprise attack, but Lee Know seemed to know it was coming, putting an end to it before Chan could even make the legendary jump.

That’s when Chan realized Lee Know knew him well. That was more than just the knowledge that came from seeing someone fight once. He must have actually studied his strengths and weaknesses beforehand. That put him into an inferior position, as he didn’t know anything about Lee Know at all. How was he supposed to win a fight against an unpredictable stranger he had never met before who knew all of his next steps?

For a while, Chan was busy working on not getting hit again, while his brain was desperately trying to come up with a way to break through Lee Know’s guards. All he could think of was distracting him, but Lee Know seemed to be quick-witted, always on his toes ready to react. Distracting him wouldn’t be an easy task, especially because Chan’s mind was pretty much blank right now.

“So… Lee Know. What do you know?” he improvised.

Lee Know moved closer, only to rather playfully kick Chan’s shin. “Is that the best joke you came up with?”

Chan resisted the urge to grab his own leg and jump around while screaming every curse word known to man. Instead, he took a deep breath and ignored the pain. Why didn’t he have stronger protection for his shins? He made a mental note to work on that later. “Seems like it.”

“Well, I know more than you think, CB97, “ Lee Know said quietly. There was something dangerous in his voice as well as his eyes. Even though Chan was sure he had never met Lee Know before or heard of the name, it felt like there was something personal going on between the two of them. Even weirder, it felt like Lee Know didn’t actually intent to harm CB97 or he would’ve done so by now. It was more like he was playing with him. 

In his time since he founded 3racha, nothing like that had ever happened. He didn’t know how to handle the unfamiliar situation at all. And he hated that. 

So, he did what he didn’t want to do at first. He had been the one to build his suit completely on his own, coming up with every feature himself. A win because of it was still a win because of him, something he could be proud of. He activated the offensive mode, debating which weapon would be the smartest considering the small distance between them and his fighting style. It would probably be best to end the fight quickly, so Chan settled for the taser gun integrated in his left glove.

He tried to get some more distance between them, then he aimed for his Lee Know’s lower torso with the goal to get him to the ground and end the fight. Before he could react, Chan fired the gun. The wires flew straight out of his glove, the barbs at the ends of it attaching themselves to Lee Know’s clothes…

…and nothing happened.

Lee Know laughed loudly, the same cute giggles as earlier bubbling out of him. “Nice try, CB.” He picked the barbs off with his fingers, not the least bit shaken up by the attack.

Chan stared at his glove with disbelief. Usually when a part of his suit didn’t work, his system would catch onto the problem and give Chan an error report. This was new.

“Your suit is still working, don’t worry.” Lee Know said in an almost comforting tone. “I just didn’t feel like getting an electric shock.”

It took a moment until Chan understood the implications of his words. “You have superpowers?”

“I have certain abilities, yes.” Lee Know pointed at the wires on the ground. “Now put this stuff away and stop fighting like a coward.”

They returned back to their previous routine, Chan struggling to avoid the hits and Lee Know trying to break through his defence.

What other weapons could he try to use on Lee Know? He seemed to be immune to electric shocks, so maybe Chan should try his laser shooters on him. It was a little extreme, but definitely effective and if he aimed for the right body parts, he wouldn’t cause any serious damage. Again, he stepped a bit back to get ready for the attack, raising his arm to shoot Lee Know’s thighs.

When he gave the command to shoot though, his suit didn’t react. Instead, the whole system died down. His heart skipped a beat when the little display in his helmet suddenly turned dark. He was left alone with nothing more but a thin layer of useless metal around him.

“Now this is a fair fight, “ Lee Know announced, making it clear that he was the one responsible for his dead suit. Judging from the glint in his eyes, he enjoyed seeing Chan powerless like that.

“How… How did you do that?” Chan asked, utterly confused by Lee Know’s powers.

Lee Know shrugged. “I told you, I have certain abilities.” He resumed fighting position. “Let’s not waste time on pointless discussions, okay?”

Still in shock, Chan didn’t prepare himself, making it easy for Lee Know to land a hit right to his head. Without his suit’s protective features, he experienced the full blow, almost falling to the ground because of the force. He couldn’t help but curse, the sharp pain striking through his head. Tears were rising in his eyes and struggled hard to blink them away. 

“Oh wow. I thought it was just rumours, but you’re actually a nothing without your suit.” Lee Know laughed, this time much more evil-sounding than before. “You can give up, you know.”

Chan gritted his teeth. Giving up wasn’t an option, especially not now. The comment had hit him right in his insecurities, hurting almost more than his head. He needed to win the fight to prove that he was worthy of being CB97, being a part of 3RACHA, being a superhero, even without powers and even without his suit.

“I’ll keep fighting.”

Lee Know crooked his head a bit, challenging him with his eyes. “Then fight.”

As he got ready to attack again, Chan was struck by the solution of how to land a hit. If Lee Know knew how CB97 fought, he had to stop fighting like CB97, trained in mixed martial arts with 3 years of experience on the streets, always hiding behind his suit. He had to start fighting like Bang Chan, awkward music production major, swimmer and most importantly: professional tackle hugger.

He quickly blocked Lee Know’s attack, then brought as much distance as possible between them. Without any more hesitation, he ran towards his opponent, arms wide open, jumping on him as he wrapped his limbs around the other’s body. Just that Chan might have miscalculated his momentum a bit, or he had expected Lee Know to have a more stable stance. Next thing he knew, they were both lying on the street, Lee Know trapped beneath him.

He stared at him full of shock. “What the fuck was that?”

“Effective, I would say.” Chan put his hands next to Lee Know’s head to support himself and not put all of his weight on him. “Are you hurt? I wasn’t planning to fall onto you, sorry.”

Lee Know rolled his eyes. “This is a fight. Are you seriously worried about hurting me? Apologizing, even?”

“Um, yeah?” Chan shifted his weight to his left hand and used the right one to inspect Lee Know’s head for injuries. It all had gone so fast, he wasn’t sure if his head had hit the ground at all, but he had to at least make sure there was no blood. He couldn’t feel anything suspicious and the hood he was wearing was still intact.

“I’m fine.” Lee Know pushed his hands away, avoiding his eyes. “I still think I won this fight.”

“What? I clearly won with this one!” Chan protested.

“But I got in more hits, “ Lee Know stated. “And this was a foul move, it doesn’t count.”

“Foul? I wasn’t aware there were any rules.”

“You don’t seem to be aware of a lot of things.” Lee Know shook his head at him. “A minute ago you were worried about me being hurt and now you won’t even admit it was a foul…”

Chan grinned, even though Lee Know couldn’t see that through his helmet. “It still ended the fight, so I win.”

“Nope.” He made eye contact again, staring intensely at Chan. “You got a red card, you can’t be the winner.”

“I’m lying on top of you right now, how am I not the winner?” Chan said. Something about Lee Know’s gazes made it completely impossible to tear his eyes away from him.

Suddenly, he heard an unfamiliar deep voice right beside them. “Oh my god, are they flirting?”

“No!” Chan and Lee Know said at the same time. Chan turned his head to see that J.One and one of Lee Know’s accomplices were standing next to them, J.One holding his arm in a firm grip. From the sounds of it, SpearB and the third one were still fighting.

“Then why are you still lying on top of him?” J.One asked, obviously irritated. 

Chan exchanged a look with Lee Know before he quickly got up, instinctively extending his hand afterwards to help Lee Know. “I was keeping him trapped so he can’t escape.”

“Sure… “ J.One didn’t sound convinced. “Quick, hold him before –“ He couldn’t finish his sentence, because Lee Know had already started running.

“Let’s go!” he yelled. SpearB’s opponent didn’t have be told twice, he ducked away from a hit and then gracefully turned around to follow Lee Know.

The one in J.One’s hold was nice enough to apologize before he elbowed him right onto his nose, quickly breaking free. After moving out of their reach, he turned around. “I guess we will see each other again soon, “ he said, giggling a bit before he rushed after his team. J.One and Chan couldn’t do much besides staring after them as they disappeared through the crowd of onlookers.

SpearB walked over to them. “What the hell just happened?” He sounded just as confused as Chan felt.

He shrugged. “I wish I knew.”

This was one of Chan’s least favourite things about being a superhero: the aftermath of a lost fight. He hated seeing J.One’s shoulders slump. He hated seeing SpearB lowering his head in shame. He hated seeing the two of them still trying to maintain a strong image in front of the people. He hated seeing the disappointed, sometimes even scared reactions of the crowd, slowly dispersing into nothing. He hated the feeling of having failed.

No matter how he looked at it, what had just happened had been Chan’s fault. If he hadn’t been so distracted by Lee Know, he might have won the fight and he would have definitely been able to catch him. Why did he let the bad guy get that advantage over him?

“Let’s go, CB.” SpearB tapped Chan’s shoulder. “The police is on its way.”

Chan snapped back into the moment, forcing himself to be strong for his team and the people. “I’M SORRY!” he yelled towards the few left bystanders. “I promise we will do better next time.” He bowed deeply, then he grabbed J.One and SpearB and ran without looking back at the little cheering crowd behind them.


	2. they never know

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "If I was a 3RACHA member, I would be SpearB, “ Chan said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> meet chan, a college student who definitely is nothing more than a college student and has nothing to hide at all!!! post-fight discussions with chan's college friends uwu i hope you like it!

“That guy made CB97 look like an amateur, “ Jeongin said, watching a video of yesterday’s fight over Mingyu’s shoulder. “If they had fought for a bit longer, I’m sure he would have won.”

“That’s bullshit, “ Mingyu argued. He was 3RACHA’s biggest supporter, always hyping up everything they did. “CB97 was holding back at the beginning. He ended the fight in seconds, I think that clearly shows he was superior.”

Jeongin didn’t seem convinced. “He was struggling a lot during this fight, he wasn’t superior at all.” He pointed at something on the display. “Did you just see that? He almost got hit again.”

Chan tried to ignore their heated discussion and evaluation of his last fight, focusing on the food in front of him. This wasn’t an unusual situation for him, his two best friends often were too busy obsessing over superheroes to actually eat. They were really into the whole scene, always following the news and recent activities. While Mingyu was a big 3RACHA fan and mostly interested in everything involving them, Jeongin was always up to date about all the heroes and villains.

Even though it led to awkward situations like this, he was curious about their opinions. Some of them helped him improve or showed him what the people wanted 3RACHA to do, others just plainly fuelled his ego. Sometimes, he really needed that reassurance. Today, it was more the former than the latter.

“He was just surprised by the attack, “ Mingyu defended CB97. “It does look like he was a bit distracted by what the other guy was saying.”

“Man, I wish there was a clear audio recording. I want to know what they are saying.” Jeongin let out a sigh. “Whatever he said, it must’ve been intense if it had that kind of effect on CB97.”

Mingyu nodded in agreement. “They were talking more than they were fighting. I’ve never seen that happen before.”

Chan had been friends with Mingyu for a while, way before his CB97 days. They had met in high school and had quickly become close through the school band. Jeongin had only joined their little friend group last semester, when Mingyu had helped the younger on a project for class. Even though he was four years younger than them, they got along really well and they never got tired of babying him. In Chan’s unbiased opinion, Jeongin was the cutest person ever. Even if he was brutally honest most of the times.

“Wait, he tried to do the CB97 kick! And failed. When was the last time that happened?” Jeongin looked shocked that the move hadn’t worked, but not disappointed at all. Instead, there was a big grin on his face. It scratched at Chan’s ego a bit to see him finding joy in his failure, but his adorable smile soothed the pain. “See? The other guy was clearly superior.”

“Are there any theories on who he is, by the way?” Mingyu asked, pausing the video to take a closer look at Lee Know. “The masks don’t look familiar at all.”

That reminded Chan of the night before. He had spent hours watching videos of the fight from different angles, analysing his mistakes and Lee Know’s tactics. Then he had researched the masks, only to find out that they were being sold by a big online store. They seemed to be one of the bestsellers of the website so thousands of people must’ve ordered them lately, but Chan had still texted Gowon the link in hopes she would be able to figure out more. He got left on read. Again.

Jeongin shrugged. “I haven’t seen anything about it yet. Most people are just thirsting over his thighs.”

“Mood, “ Chan mumbled. During the fight, he had been too busy to notice how godly Lee Know’s thighs were. When he scrolled through the responses to the fight online though, he stumbled over countless pixelated screenshots and blurry pics of his thighs and honestly? The people were right thirsting over them. 

“I wonder what his name is.” Mingyu sighed, starting the video from the beginning. "He is pretty badass.”

“Lee Know.” It had slipped out before Chan could stop himself. He quickly tried to correct his mistake once he realized. “Online, they said he called himself that.”

Jeongin gave Chan a weird look, but he didn’t say anything.

“Since when do you care about this stuff?” Mingyu asked. He seemed more surprised by the fact that he was participating in the conversation than the actual information that had slipped out of him.

“It was on my news feed, “ he lied. Actually, he knew that no one had heard the name besides him as he had looked up ‘Lee Know’ several times, never getting any results related to the person he was looking for. “I only remember because I thought Lee Know was a stupid name.”

“CB97 is a stupid name, “ someone from behind him suddenly said. Chan turned around, meeting the eyes of Lee Minho, a junior that was friends with Jeongin. Even though they had met at gatherings and parties from time to time, Chan had never really paid much attention to him. He only knew that he was part of the dance club and a year younger than him and Mingyu.

Minho greeted all of them, but Chan only acknowledged him with a nod before he returned to the topic. “Why does everyone think CB97 is a shitty name? It sounds pretty badass, if you ask me, “ he defended himself, trying not to sound too passionate about it. Usually, he avoided voicing his opinions on 3RACHA related controversies, but his pride got the best of him in this case.

Even Mingyu gave him a sceptical look at that. “Nothing about CB97 sounds badass. SpearB, that’s a badass superhero alias. But CB97? No.”

Chan tried not to be offended by that, but it did sting a little. He had taken his time coming up with a name and was honestly pretty happy with CB97. It gave him confidence whenever he yelled his name before entering a fight. And it had an important meaning to him, being the initials of his name and his birth year. He liked that his “real” self and his 3RACHA identity were connected in that way. It made him feel like he was not just someone who put on a costume and tried to act like a hero. It made him feel like he, Chan, _was_ a superhero.

“Lee Know isn’t any better, “ Chan argued. “It’s ridiculous. Does it even have any meaning?”

Minho sat down at the table on the empty seat next to Chan, obviously ready to fight about this. “It sounds mysterious and intriguing. It pulls you in and makes you wanna find out more. Plus, you can make fun expressions with it. Like I know, you know, Lee Know.”

Mingyu giggled over Minho’s comment. “It has a certain charm.”

“From what I’ve seen, Lee Know himself has a certain charm, “ Minho replied with a grin. “And his fighting is just … it’s on another level.” Another level was a good way to describe his unique way of fighting, Chan thought. It was one of the most intense fights he had ever experienced. And he had to agree that Lee Know did have a certain charm. In the end, that’s what got him so distracted during the fight.

“I’m not sure what he wants, though.” Mingyu tilted his head, then he returned his attention to his phone, probably watching yet another video of the fight. He was asking the exact same question Chan had asked himself last night instead of sleeping. Something made him doubt that it was a plain bank robbery. It felt far too personal for that.

“Probably just kick CB97’s ass and that’s very relatable.” Even though he was replying to Jeongin’s comment, Minho was looking right at Chan when he said that. His eyes were sparkling, his intense stare challenging Chan. For a second, he felt like he had missed an important piece of information.

He shrugged the weird feeling off by taking a sip of his coke, looking everywhere but at Minho. “Why do you want to kick CB97’s ass? Has he ever done anything to you?”

“He’s just… annoying.” Minho made a vague gesture with his hand. “He feels himself a bit too much for my taste. I think he has some sort of hero complex.”

Chan wasn’t sure what to make of that. He felt himself too much? What was that even supposed to mean? “How would you know that? Have you ever met him?”

“Have _you_?” Minho returned the question immediately, raising an eyebrow.

“So we both don’t know him personally. Great! Then can we stop making assumptions about him and judging him for nothing? He’s just a normal person, like us.” Chan tried to say that casually to not raise any suspicion. His lying skills had improved extremely ever since he started his double life, but he still got nervous and he knew he had some obvious tells. Lucky for him, none of his college friends paid enough attention to things like that to be able to spot them.

“Yeah, he is just like us.” There was a sarcastic edge to his voice. “Maybe CB97 is just like _you_.” From every other person, that would have been a nice thing to say. CB97 was widely recognized as a hero and being compared to a hero is a compliment. Out of Minho’s mouth though, it sounded like an insult.

“What? CB97 and I aren’t alike at all. If I was a 3RACHA member, I would be SpearB, “ Chan said.

Jeongin burst out into loud laughter at that. “You? SpearB? SpearB is lot cooler than you are.”

That was true, but Chan needed to keep face. “I’m at least as cool as he is.”

Minho just rolled his eyes, returning to topic to CB97 again. “You know what I think the main problem with CB97 is? How painfully unaware he is of what’s going on around him.”

That confused Chan even more than his previous comment. The feeling from before returned, telling him that something was going on right in front of him that he failed to understand. Maybe he _was_ unaware of his surroundings. “Oh? So what exactly is he unaware of?”

“He’s not aware that there are rules.” Minho stared right into his eyes while saying that. Something about this moment felt familiar to Chan, but he couldn’t quite pinpoint why. He only knew that he didn’t get a word of what Minho was saying.

“What rules?” Mingyu asked in his place. “I didn’t know he broke any rules.”

Minho tore his eyes away from Chan, his expression turning cold. “He’s just annoyingly stupid.”

Chan was used to criticism and antis. People liked to say he was nothing but his money, that he wasn’t even that good of a fighter, that he was the weakest member of 3RACHA, some even asking him to leave the group. And they had a point with that, seeing as he was the only one without superpowers. It still hurt having to hear it from other people and he often got insecure if he was worthy of his position in the group. However, J.One and SpearB were always there to hype him up again, to remind him how important he was for the team as the leader, a fighter and as a person.

He had also gotten comments about being too arrogant, which wasn’t the case at all. But to people who only knew him as the guy in the suit fighting criminals, he might seem. So, those kinds of comments were easy for him to handle.

Stupid, though? That’s something no one had ever called CB97 before.

“Why do you think he is stupid? I don’t get it.” Chan just had to defend himself, even though he felt like he was bragging. Did it qualify as bragging if other people didn’t know he was talking about himself? “I heard he built his suit all by himself, that kind of proves he isn’t dumb. I’m assuming you need to know a lot about physics to do something like that.”

Actually, Chan had had no clue how much physics would be involved when he started designing the suit until he encountered problem after problem. It took him weeks in the library to understand the basics of electromagnetism and even longer to apply them to his design. He worked hard on it, he had all the reason to be proud of himself.

“Well, maybe he is smart when it comes to science but stupid when it comes to life, “ Minho argued. “It’s a widespread phenomenon, isn’t it?”

That made Chan pause for a second. What did it even mean to be stupid at life? It had never occurred to Chan that he could be stupid in any way, seeing as his intelligence was pretty much the thing most people praised about him, from his parents to teachers, professors and his friends. 

Luckily, Mingyu stepped up for him when he noticed that Chan wasn’t going to say anything. “Does it matter? He has a good heart and I think that’s the most important thing.”

That comment made Chan smile, warming him up from inside. Mingyu was right, that really was the most important thing. If he could only be known for one thing, Chan would want to be known as a genuinely good person.

“Yeah, me too, “ Jeongin agreed. “CB is a nice guy. Of course he isn’t perfect, no one is, but he is trying his best and I respect him for that.”

Seeing how much his friends believed in him made Chan proud. He couldn’t stop the wide grin from spreading on his face, barely going against his reflex to thank them for the compliments.

Minho let out a scoff. “Of course you both support CB97.”

“Why wouldn’t we? He has saved so many lives and inspires people every day, “ Mingyu said. “All of 3RACHA do.”

“Okay, he does good things, “ Minho gives in. “Saves lives all the time, rescues children and kittens, keeping criminals in their place in this city. And what about it? It’s admirable what he does, still looking good no matter what. So what? He is annoying and stupid.”

“Um… did you just call CB97 good-looking?” Chan was, yet again, entirely confused by Minho’s behaviour and words.

“I mean… his body is nice, you know?” A panicked expression appeared on his face, as if he just realized what he had said.

“If you’re into big hunky pieces of metal, sure, “ Jeongin said, laughing loudly. 

Minho abruptly stood up, his ears turning completely red. “I just saw Hyunjin, I gotta go…do…” He didn’t finish the sentence, instead almost running away from the table, leaving the three guys staring after him for a few seconds.

Mingyu was the first to break the silence. “I mean, CB97’s suit is pretty cool. I’m sure that’s what he meant.”

That did make sense, maybe he really just had worded it weirdly. After all the hours Chan had put into the design of his suit, it definitely did look cool and deserved the praise. “Yeah, what else could he have meant? I love CB97’s suit.”

Jeongin was still chuckling a bit, giving Chan another strange look. “You know what? I think both CB97 and Lee Know are really fucking stupid.”

“What do you mean?” Chan really felt like he was missing out on something that, apparently, everyone besides him knew. “Why would Lee Know be stupid?”

“Just a gut feeling, “ Jeongin said with a grin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> please leave feedback! <3


	3. love letter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Come on, tell me what’s going on.”
> 
> “Let’s just say someone seems to really dislike you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ahh im really sorry im taking so long to update!!! had a lot of fun writing about 3RACHA + Gowon tho, i hope you enjoy reading this chapter!

**Gowon** __  
meeting in 30  
and don’t go on social media before that lmao

Chan was in class when he received the texts by Gowon. Usually, 3RACHA had regularly set up meetings up to once or twice a week. They used the time to discuss their fights, recent activities in the city and whatever else was on their mind. It was mostly Chan as the leader who took initiative to plan the meetings.

Gowon calling them in out of the blue meant something had happened. Something urgent, something they had to talk about right now.

At this point, he had become a pro at sneaking out of class as quietly and quickly as possible. The profs didn’t notice him leaving anymore and the other students had stopped questioning his weird behaviour. Only Mingyu still bothered to ask what was going on. After countless times he had to improvise and come up with a story on the spot, Chan was prepared for the inevitable question. He had a whole list of plausible excuses memorized.

When Mingyu noticed Chan shoving his stuff into his backpack, he leaned over. “Where are you going?”

“My little sister just texted, she lost her key, “ he explained. There was no way Mingyu wouldn’t fall for this lie. As he was a family guy as well, he would understand that Chan had to leave class. “I need to go help her.”

“Isn’t your family in Australia right now?” Mingyu furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.

Shit. Chan should’ve really thought his excuse through. “Uh… didn’t I tell you they are visiting?”

Mingyu’s expression softened, a smile appearing on his face now. “Oh, that’s nice. Greet them from me, then.” He waved at Chan one last time before he returned his attention to his notes.

Chan let out a sigh of relief before he got up. He always chose a seat at the back of the class, as close to the door as possible. Only one other student, Kim Yoohyeon from the dance club, noticed him as he made his way to the door as she was sitting directly behind him. He quickly shot her a small smile before he left. If he was lucky, she had heard him explaining the situation to Mingyu and wouldn’t think much more about him running out of class.

Once he was finally out of the lecture hall, he hurried out of the building towards his bike. Just as he was putting his helmet on, he noticed two other students sprinting out of a building, heading to the parking lot as well. It made him feel a bit better to see that he wasn’t the only one leaving class randomly. That way, what he was doing wouldn’t raise any suspicion.

Ten minutes later, he arrived at the apartment building that was home to 3RACHA’s headquarters. It was just a small apartment, most of its space used to store their equipment. Chan had picked it because of its location in the city centre and because there was a gym right next to it. Compared to the JYP Tower, the headquarters of the biggest superhero league in the city, it was nothing, but it was the best Chan could afford seeing as most of his money went into their suit and technology.

Gowon was already sitting on the armchair in their meeting room, laptop on her knees. It’s been over a year since she had joined the team and she had proven herself to be a crucial part of it. After one of their fights, she had walked up to Chan and offered her services as an assistant. Of course Chan had turned her down at first, but she had been persistent so they had decided to give her a chance. A few months later, Chan had already trusted her so deeply that he had revealed his true identity to her. Not even J.One and SpearB knew who he really was or what he looked like, neither did he know anything about their civilian identity. Back when they had started, they had agreed to stay anonymous for safety reasons. But after years of hiding, he found it relieving to have at least one person in the world who knew about both of his identities.

“Chan!” she greeted him enthusiastically. “What’s up, bro?”

He rolled his eyes, throwing his backpack to the side and sitting down on the couch, trying to steal a glance at her laptop screen. “Why did you call us here?”

“No spoilers! Wait till the others arrive.” Gowon turned her laptop away from him. “I was so bored waiting for you, I made a PowerPoint presentation.”

In moments like this, Chan regretted hiring Gowon. Not that he was actually paying her with more than an unreasonable amount of food, but still. "Come on, tell me what’s going on.”

“Let’s just say someone seems to really dislike you.”

That statement only fuelled Chan’s curiosity, but despite his begging she kept quiet. Instead, she started telling him about the shenanigans she and her friends had been up to.

Luckily, it didn’t take long until they heard the loud chatting of J.One and SpearB outside the door. Chan adjusted his face mask and his beanie to try and cover as much of himself as possible. Wearing their suits during meetings was just uncomfortable and bothering, so they had settled on this.

“CB97 IN DA BUILDING!” J.One yelled when he entered the room. “The response to yesterday’s fight was crazy.”

SpearB followed after him. “For real, CB’s fight is our fourth most streamed fight already. Feels like this will surpass the friendly competition you had with Bambam once.” Chan had noticed that the views on his fight with Lee Know were already nearing 500k views on YouTube, but his fight with Bambam had far over 3 million. He doubted that the new video could reach that.

“Did you see the memes, though?” Gowon took out her phone and opened Instagram. “They’re all over the internet.”

Chan cleared his throat, trying to get his team to focus. “Can we just get this meeting started?”

SpearB shrugged and sat down next to him on the couch, J.One settling in on the floor. “Why did you call us here?” he asked Gowon.

Dramatic as she was, Gowon got up from her seat and set down the laptop on the armchair instead, revealing her PowerPoint presentation to them. “ _this man tried to kill cb97 and here’s why! *shocking twist at the end*”_ Beneath the title, there was a high quality picture of Lee Know hitting Chan. "No clickbait!" Gowon said. 

It was time to get a new assistant. “Do we really need to watch this?” Chan asked. “Can’t you just tell us what happened?”

“Boring!” She shot him a dirty look before officially starting her presentation. “As a superhero, it’s natural to have haters and people who desperately want to get rid of you. However, in every hero’s journey, they will encounter someone who is different than all the other criminals. Someone who will make their blood boil in a way no one else can. The relationship between the hero and that person goes deep, rooted in personal hatred for each other. This is the true villain of their story, their nemesis.”

In theory, having a nemesis sounded exciting and fun. In reality, Chan imagined it to be nothing more than a bother. Plus, with his experience in the industry, he doubted something like that would ever actually happen to them. “This isn’t a comic book or action movie. It doesn’t work like that.”

Gowon just ignored him, continuing on to the next slide that showed a still from the security tape of the bank. Lee Know and his two accomplices were standing in the middle of the bank, guns in their hands. “Yesterday afternoon, these three men tried to rob a bank, barging in with their masks and weapons. We immediately got a call reporting the ongoing robbery, so we could stop it before anything bad happened. Not an unusual story for us, right?”

They all shook their heads. Attempted robberies were a routine procedure for them.

“Well, then the fight happened and this is where things get interesting.” A pic on the laptop now showed Chan and Lee Know fighting, capturing one of the times Lee Know had hit him. “It got pretty heated between this man and our leader CB. In the end, they managed to escape.”

“You still haven’t told us what exactly was going on with you and that guy, “ SpearB reminded him. “I wanna hear that story.”

“Yeah, spill the tea, CB!” Gowon seemed more than happy to pause her presentation for this.

“Uh…” Chan knew that he eventually had to tell his team about it, but it was humiliating to admit what had happened. “It was weird, to be honest. He definitely studied my fighting style before, he could predict all of my next moves.”

“So it was something personal all along, “ SpearB concluded.

J.One nodded thoughtfully. “It makes sense. That’s why the robbery was so badly planned and way too obvious. They _wanted_ to get caught.”

“I was just coming to that!” Gowon clicked on her laptop, proceeding to the next slide. More of the surveillance footage was shown on the screen. “We’ve all seen really bad attempts at crimes, but this is different. They didn’t even try to go for the money, not once. It took exactly ten minutes from the call until J.One arrived at the scene. In those ten minutes, all they did was wave about with their guns a bit and walk around the place. As soon as you arrived, they left the building without even hesitating.”

“Can I add something? When I was fighting with the two guys, it felt like they were just stalling time. It didn’t feel like they wanted to harm me in any way.” J.One looked at Chan. “I think it was all because of CB.”

“Same,” SpearB agreed. “I watched a few videos of my fight with the guy in comparisons to CB’s. During our fight, he was way more passive, relying on his strong defence over anything else.”

Chan had watched videos of the others yesterday, but he hadn’t noticed that difference. Was it really possible that all of this was only happening because of him? “He was being aggressive with me, but it felt… playful, almost.”

“Yeah, if he had wanted to seriously hurt you, he would have had the chance, “ J.One said. He was fully right, Lee Know could have taken Chan out in seconds if he had wanted to.

“CB, do you have any idea who it could be?” SpearB asked, leaning forward. “Is there someone who could be pissed at you?”

Chan quickly went through the people he knew in his head, but he couldn’t think of anyone who would hate him specifically. There was no one in his personal life who had any reason to and no one would hate CB97 specifically instead of 3RACHA as a whole. “Not really, I think?”

“Well, there has to be someone.” Gowon clicked to the next slide of her presentation. “I tried to figure out where they went after running away from the crime scene, so I checked nearby CCTVs. And they literally disappear.” On screen, a short recording of a CCTV is shown on loop. “From eye witness’s reports, I knew that they ran away and turned left from the street the bank is on, right? Well, one of the shops there has a camera that they had to pass if they went through that street. But they are nowhere to be found on the recording.”

“Maybe the witnesses are wrong, “ SpearB suggested.

“I’m the eye witness and I’m very sure of what I saw, “ J.One said. “They definitely turned right.”

“So you’re suggesting they can teleport?” SpearB leaned closer, trying to spot the three guys on the screen. “I’ve heard of people with the ability before, but never anyone who could take other people with them and I highly doubt all three of them can teleport.”

“It could be possible, “ Gowon said. “With superpowers, you never know. I mean, they didn’t show any signs of abilities during the fights, maybe they don’t have powers at all. But to me, teleportation seems well within the possible.”

“Actually, Lee Know used superpowers during our fight, “ Chan revealed. He had forgotten to tell his team about it earlier. It was something he wanted to bury deep inside his mind and never talk about, but he couldn’t keep this from them. “He can control electricity.”

They all stared at him in shock.

“Lee Know?” Gowon stared down at her screen, obviously not having heard the name before. “That explains the initials.” Chan had no idea what she was talking about, but he didn’t have time to ask because he was being hit by J.One.

“Why didn’t you tell us that earlier?” he said with an accusing tone. “And you knew his name all this time? That could’ve been a major hint to who he is or what he wants.”

Chan shrugged. “It kind of slipped my mind.”

“Wait.” SpearB crooked his head, examining Chan closely. “If he can control electricity… is that why you didn’t use your suit?”

He nodded.

“Woah.” J.One let out an almost impressed sound. “He manipulated your suit?”

“He turned it off, “ Chan explained. “It was completely dead.” He still remembered feeling incredibly powerless in that moment. It made him realize that his suit made him CB97. Without it, he was vulnerable.

“That’s bad. Fuck, this guy is an actual danger to you, CB.” SpearB seemed more concerned about the whole situation than Chan himself. “We don’t even know how powerful he is, electricity manipulating can be extremely dangerous.”

Gowon pointed at the screen. “That could explain how they disappeared.”

“Maybe electrokinetic invisibility? Like Electro from Spiderman uses, “ J.One said. “Never seen it in real life, but I think it’s possible.”

“I think electroportation makes more sense. I’m not sure electrokinetic invisibility would work on other people, but electroportation might, “ SpearB presented his theory.

Gowon laughed awkwardly. “Actually I thought he just manipulated the cameras but your theory also makes sense.”

“However he did it, they disappeared. We don’t really have a way to find them unless they make a move again.” Chan said, turning the conversation away from the superpower talk.

“Well, Lee Know did make a move today.” She clicked to the next slide that showed the street they had fought on the day before. “Today, almost 2 hours ago now, someone left a message for CB on the wall of the bank. The message is a personal attack on him, specifically mentioning his name. It’s signed off with LK, so I’m assuming that stands for Lee Know.”

“He left a message for me?” Chan couldn’t even imagine what reason Lee Know had to do that. What did he have to say to Chan? Did he want to hurt his ego even more?

“Because of the intricate and deeply, personally insulting message, I believe that Lee Know has the potential to become CB’s nemesis. All his crimes so far have been, indirectly or directly, targeting our leader. Why would he do something like that?” Gowon made a dramatic pause. “Because he hates CB. Lee Know must feel a burning hatred towards CB to do such a thing.”

“Lee Know has only committed one crime so far, “ Chan reminded her. “That’s not reason enough to think he’s going to be my nemesis.”

“Two crimes, “ Gowon corrected. “Spray painting the wall of a bank is also kind of illegal.”

“Just tell us the message. What did Lee Know say?” J.One leaned forward, eyes wide in curiosity.

Gowon obviously enjoyed how much the team was hanging at her lips right now, waiting for her to finally reveal the message. “CB, are you in the right headspace to receive information that could possibly hurt you?”

Chan closed his eyes. Lee Know’s message must’ve been really bad. “Let’s get it over with.”

Instead of reading it out, Gowon clicked to the next slide of her PowerPoint. For a moment, Chan kept his eyes closed, until he heard the howling laughter and giddy giggles of his teammates. “Damn, what did CB do to him?” SpearB asked.

He slowly opened his eyes, inching closer towards the laptop. A rather blurry picture showed the wall of the bank. There, in big, bright red letters, stood Lee Know’s message:

**CB97 is stupid & sucks - LK**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i would appreciate feedback a lot, please tell me what you think about the chapter/whole story so far!


	4. if you dare

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Did you like it?” Lee Know’s eyes sparkled at the mention of the message. “It was pretty rude of you to leave me on read.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> chan faces stairs, a wall and lee know in this thrilling new chapter of attention! finally introducing the JYP League! (be warned of a very inaccurate portrayal of jyp, pls dont take it seriously lol)
> 
> i hope you enjoy this chapter, please tell me your thoughts!

Chan spent the rest of the week being clowned for the message by Lee Know.

Netizens were having a feast, constantly making fun of it. It had already turned into a meme with people using “(…) is stupid & sucks” in literally every possible situation. 3RACHA fans were making all sorts of theories about Lee Know and what CB97 had done to him. One of the most popular ones was that CB97 and Lee Know were exes, Lee Know now looking for revenge after an ugly break-up. That was completely ridiculous since the only ex Chan had was his 6th grade girlfriend. Leading a double life as college student and superhero didn’t leave much time for dating.

The message was also a great source of pleasure for his teammates. J.One found it particularly funny and loved texting Chan about it. He had gotten texts interrupting him in the middle of class, during his one hour of sleep at night and while he was stopping an accident on the streets as CB97, all telling him that he was stupid and sucked. Gowon had joined the theorizing side of the fandom, constantly sending him random reasons why Lee Know could possibly hate him. _im telling u, he thinks u suck bc of ur weird love for pineapple juice_ was just one of the many dumb ideas she had come up with. SpearB did make fun of it sometimes, but moderately compared to the other two. He seemed to be more concerned about the risk Lee Know and his ability could mean for Chan.

And then there were his college friends. They had their fair share of laughing about the message in college, or so Chan thought. He was proven wrong when they hung out in Mingyus’s apartment on Sunday. For some reason, Lee Know and CB97 became the main conversation topic yet again.

“It’s ridiculous, “ Mingyu said from his position on the couch. “Leaving a message like that is a childish move.”

Jeongin, who was lying on the carpet, strongly shook his head. “Isn’t it a power move in a way? You need real guts to say something like that to a superhero like CB97. By speaking to him in that way, making fun of him in those few words, he is showing that he doesn’t think CB97 is some sort of superior being. His use of simple language and petty words as a stylistic devise that paint CB97 as a very human and rather primitive person really shows that he has a way with language.”

“The literature major jumped out, “ Mingyu commented with a laugh. “I can’t believe you’re trying to justify ‘he is stupid & sucks’ by turning it into a linguistic strategy. Lee Know just wanted to insult CB97, it’s not that deep.”

“Yeah, okay, he definitely wouldn’t think like me, “ Jeongin agreed. “As far as I know him, he was probably just trying to be dramatic.”

“Kind of sounds like you know him personally, “ Chan joked, knowing full well that wasn’t what Jeongin meant. “I have the same impression of him, though.” According to Gowon’s judgement, Lee Know just plain up hated Chan and his primary goal was to annoy him. Not that Gowon’s judgement was particularly trustworthy. 

“Maybe I do, “ Jeongin said vaguely. “Maybe we all know him but just aren’t realizing it. You never know who hides behind a mask.” His low and serious tone caused a shiver down Chan’s spine.

“Don’t be silly. The only person I know that’s constantly acting like they have a big secret is Chan, “ Mingyu said, but he was giggling. Hearing his friend say such a thing made him feel uneasy, even though it was obvious that Mingyu wasn’t seriously accusing him of anything. “And I highly doubt Chan is Lee Know, “ he continued. “He’s too soft to ever fight or insult anyone.”

The uneasy feeling was replaced by warmth spreading in his heart. Even though Mingyu was wrong thinking Chan would never fight someone, it was nice to know he thought that highly of him. He robbed over the couch to Mingyu and put his head into his lap, looking up to him. He heard and felt Mingyu’s phone vibrate in his pocket, but he didn’t pay it any mind. “That’s sweet. But … how am I suspicious?”

Jeongin seemed all to ready to reply to that question. Before Mingyu even had a chance, he was listing off reasons. “First of all, you randomly disappear sometimes. Like, you get a text and then immediately run out of the room and no one hears from you for a few hours. Second, you claim you don’t care about the superhero stuff but you know an awful lot about it. Third, there was this tiny blonde girl that once visited you in college and you introduced her as “your cousin” but then two weeks later you told me you didn’t have any cousins. And you are never at home, like, ever. Once you had a broken arm and you told Mingyu it was a skateboard accident even though you don’t have a skateboard and you told me that it happened while golfing. You-“

“Okay, okay, you make it sound like I’m actually hiding something, but I can explain all of those.” Chan really needed to work on his lying skills. It was concerning how many details Jeongin had noticed and remembered.

The younger boy made a dismissive gesture. “We know, we’ve heard your excuses a 100 times already.”

Chan closed his eyes. He wasn’t exactly surprised to hear that they didn’t believe in his lies, but it was still disappointing.

“It’s okay to not tell us everything, you know.” Mingyu put a hand on Chan’s, stroking it lovingly. The soft moment was interrupted by another vibration of Mingyu’s phone. “I would tell you to just stop lying to us because that’s the only part that bothers me but then again, your excuses are just way too funny.”

“Thank you, “ he simply said. He appreciated how much trust Mingyu put into him to not be bothered by his best friend hiding such a big secret from him. “I’m so sorry I can’t always tell you the truth.”

Mingyu smiled at him, his thumb moving in soothing circle on his skin. “Don’t worry about it.”

Jeongin cleared his throat. “Can we end soft hours and get back to the topic? I wanna talk about Lee Know’s message.”

After one last glance at Chan, Mingyu went along with it. “It’s been a few days since he left it. Do you think he’s planning something bigger?” he asked. His phone by his side was vibrating furiously now. Even though Chan knew he didn’t like checking his phone when he was with his friends, he gave in and took it out of his pocket. 

“Oh, definitely.” Jeongin nodded. “That message was just a little provocation, a little reminder of their encounter. There’s something else coming CB97’s way.”

His whole team had agreed on that as well. Whatever Lee Know wanted from Chan, it was more than fight him once and barely scratch at his ego with a childish message. There were no hints of his real intentions yet, but that scared Chan even more. For all he knew, Lee Know could be planning on destroying the whole city.

Chan let out a sigh. “I wonder what Lee Know is up to.”

Mingyu looked up from his phone. “Right now? He’s attacking the JYP Tower.” He turned around his phone to his friends and showed them a blurry picture of three people standing on the roof of the JYP Tower, completely surrounded by the heroes of the league.

Chaos erupted in the room. Jeongin began frantically searching for his phone to check on the news himself, letting out weird screeches and whines. Mingyu was turning on the TV and started zapping through the channels, while also reading out updates from his phone. Even though only three people were talking (or not talking, in Jeongin’s case), the noise level of the room skyrocketed.

Chan tried to stay calm and took out his phone, right in the moment he received a message from Gowon.

 **Gowon** _  
someone from jyp called and requested 3racha at the scene  
the scene is the jyp tower  
just in case u live under a rock lmao lee know + friends are attacking the jyp tower  
idk why the league needs back up to handle three dudes  
but ik u want them on ur good side so I accepted  
j and b are on their way, hurry up_

Deep inside, Chan had always hoped that one day, JYP would offer to take 3RACHA into the league. Being part of a league came with many benefits such as funding, a team of scientist, advanced technology and support on all levels. Despite having worked with JYP heroes a few times and being on friendly basis with some of them, there had been no offer yet. Still, it was a good sign that JYP wanted their help in a situation like this. It showed that JYP respected them and wanted to work with them. 

“Shit, apparently there’s a power outage at my house, “ he came up with a lie for his friends. It hadn’t even been five minutes since they told him not to lie anymore, but running out right now without an excuse was way too suspicious. “City’s a mess again.”

Chan got up from his position on the couch and looked at his friends who were way too focused to pay much attention to him. Mingyu quickly waved him goodbye without tearing his eyes from his phone, Jeongin only so much as grumbled what could have been a “bye”. With one last “See you in school!” Chan fled the apartment.

Ten minutes later, CB97 walked into the lobby of the JYP Tower with SpearB and J.One by his side. “I’ve never been here before, “ J.One said, stopping right by the door to take everything in. “This is _crazy_.” His eyes darted over the portraits of big JYP heroes on the wall to the golden statue of JYP himself. Finally, they reached the gigantic, cylinder-like display in the middle of the room that usually showed pictures of the city or success stories of the league. Right now, it was completely black. Despite that, J.One seemed mesmerized by the chic interior of the tower. The headquarters of 3RACHA really couldn’t compare.

Chan remembered feeling exactly the same when he had entered the building for the first time, way before his 3RACHA times. He had tried to convince JYP to take him in, but was rejected due to his lack of powers. Well, now he had made it to the top with his own team, making the city a bit safer even without powers. Sometimes Chan wondered if JYP ever regretted not accepting him.

While J.One was in awe of the lobby, SpearB didn’t seem impressed at all. Instead, he immediately stepped towards the counter as if he had done so a thousand times and cleared his throat.

The man behind the counter looked up and seemed to immediately recognize them. “Are you here to help with the fight?” he asked. 

“We are here to end the fight!” J.One announced confidently.

Chan ignored him. “Yeah, “ he confirmed. “Can you tell us how to get to the roof?”

The employee gave them an empathetic look. “Usually, I’d say take the elevator, but the power is out in the whole building. Not even our backup supply is working. So you’re gonna have to use the stairs.” He pointed to a door next to the four elevators.

Chan couldn’t stop a small sigh from escaping through his lips. The JYP Tower was the tallest building in the city as well as the whole country, climbing up the stairs all the way to the roof would take them _forever_. “Thank you, “ he told the man, trying not to let it show how much the stairs discouraged him.

The news didn’t take away from J.One’s confidence and energy. “Let’s go!” he yelled, already running off towards the staircase. With his speed, he’d be up in no time. SpearB laughed, following right after him. They were real superheroes with real superpowers, of course a few stairs weren’t an obstacle for them. At least two thirds of the team would be up on the roof in time. 

With no abilities, Chan was left behind as the slowest and weakest member. With his luck, the fight would probably already be over once he reached the roof.

He walked over to the stairs quickly, determined to at least give it his best try. After all, this was the exact situation hours on the Stairmaster in the gym had prepared him for.

From the bottom of the stairs, he could hear the faint noises of his teammates’ steps, motivating him to try and keep up. He took one last deep breath and then he started running.

After what felt like an eternity, he lost count of how many floors he had passed, along with his sense for time. It felt like the stairs were consuming all his thoughts and energy, like all that existed were the stairs lying below him and the stairs lying ahead of him.

“Gowon, “ he groaned, opening up their connection. “How… how much time has passed?”

“Wait, let me check, “ Gowon said, her tone annoyingly cheerful. “You have been running for exactly… 45 seconds.”

“Fuck, “ Chan cursed, stopping to look down only to see that he really hadn’t gotten far yet. He could still see the ground just a few meters below him. “I’m never gonna make it to the top.”

“Shut up and run, I know you can do-” Gowon paused for a second, then she let out an excited squeal. “I can be your personal coach and motivate you!”

Chan was too out of breath to say no. Instead, he lowered the volume, just in time to not go deaf when Gowon started yelling into his ear. “RUN FASTER, YOU IDIOT! EVEN A SLOTH WOULD ALREADY BE AT A TOP RIGHT NOW. YOU CAN’T EVEN GO UP A FEW STAIRS AND YOU THINK YOU CAN BEAT LEE KNOW? RIDICULOUS! NOW MOVE YOUR CRUSTY ASS-“

That was enough. Chan interrupted her “motivational” screaming. “Can you play some music? I think that would motivate me.”

“You think music would motivate you more than my coaching?” Gowon scoffed, pretending to be offended. Or maybe she was actually offended, Chan wasn’t sure. “But okay, I’ll play you some music. Wait.” After a few moments of silence, Gowon started making weird noises, completely lacking any rhythm. It vaguely resembled … beatboxing?

Even running in silence was better than the auditory torture that was Gowon’s beatboxing. If he had to listen to it for even one more second, he would lose his mind right there in the staircase of the JYP Tower. Chan didn’t even bother saying bye to her before he turned off the connection.

While his feet kept moving, his mind wandered to Lee Know. His attack on the JYP Tower proved that what he was doing wasn’t just a personal vendetta against Chan. Even though he had a few contacts in the league, he had no real connection to it that would explain the attack. Was it possible that Lee Know had a problem with several superheroes – or maybe heroes in general?

The thought bothered Chan for some reason.

What if he stepped out of this staircase, only to see Lee Know fight with someone else? That would obviously happen, with all the superheroes on the roof right now. But what if Lee Know wouldn’t care about Chan’s appearance, what if he was too focused on someone else to even notice him? The twisted feeling grabbing at his guts right now almost felt like jealo-

His suit started beeping loudly, but it was too late. Chan ran face first into a wall.

Thanks to his suit, he didn’t feel the complete impact, only a numb feeling of pain spreading through his body. His forehead and chest were pressed against the padding before he was pushed back, almost stumbling down the stairs again. In the last moment, he managed to grab the railing and keep himself from falling. That’s when he noticed that there were no more steps lying ahead of him.

He had reached the top.

His thighs were burning, he was completely out of breath and the newly added pain from the collision with the wall didn’t make him feel any better, but he had reached the top. A sense of satisfaction mixed with a hint of euphoria rushed through his veins. He had fought with the stairs (and the wall) and he _won_.

Next to the wall he had just accidentally gotten a bit too close with was a door labelled as an emergency exit. As he pushed it open, much to his surprise, he wasn’t met with the loud noises you’d expect of approximately thirty superheroes plus supers in training fighting against three villains. Instead, all he could hear was the thundering sound of a helicopter. It was the first thing he saw when he stepped outside, its side covered by the huge logo of a news channel.

Perfect. Even the media had arrived before him.

While running up the stairs, Chan had thought about what would await him at the top. Brutal fights, a raging battle, maybe even some injured superheroes lying on the ground. However, the scene on the roof was far from what he had pictured in his head.

On one side stood the JYP League in full glory, their set up almost looking like an army ready to attack. Chan spotted the individual groups, easily recognizable by the logos engraved on their chests. GOT7 was standing far too the left, Twice and ITZY directly in the middle, Day6 far on the right. The supers in training were standing in the back in their uniform black suits, trying hard to look as badass as their seniors.

It was a powerful, intimidating view. His heart was longing to be a part of that. 

The other side was the complete contrast. SpearB and J.One stood side by side with Lee Know’s accomplices, almost looking like they belonged to a team together. One of Lee Know accomplices was leaning over to whisper something to the others, making the rest of them laugh out loud. This side of roof seemed to be having way more fun than the other, but they also looked more like middle schoolers hanging out in their homemade Halloween costumes than actual superheroes.

That was the side Chan belonged to.

The strangest sight of it all was in the middle of the roof. It was a scene so weird that not even Chan’s subconscious would come up with it in his dreams. For a moment, Chan questioned if he had lost his mind on the stairs or maybe hit his head too hard when he ran into the wall. 

There was JYP himself, wearing a bright pink suit. He was known for not wearing proper armour to fights in favour of wearing fashionable outfits. Even though “fashionable” was up for debate, in Chan’s opinion. He had the powerful ability of manipulating people with his words, something that gave him an advantage in every fight. Right now, his mouth was shut.

Lee Know was standing opposite of him, only a few feet separating them. He was wearing the exact same outfit and mask as during the first time Chan had met him. His intense gaze was fixed on JYP, their eyes interlocked. They weren’t fighting, not even in the position for it. All they were doing was looking at each other.

What the fuck was going on here?

Chan’s instincts told him to yell his catch phrase, as always when he entered a fight scene. Interrupting the complete silence (ignoring the deafening sound of the helicopter) didn’t feel right though. Plus, he was still catching his breath from getting up the stairs, so he wasn’t sure yelling was an option for his body right now.

However, the loud noise of the door falling closed behind him did the job for him and announced his arrival to everyone. Suddenly, 59 of the 60 people he estimated to be on the roof turned to him. All eyes were on him except for Lee Know’s, who was still looking at JYP. 

It had happened just like he had imagined in the staircase earlier. There was someone else Lee Know hated, someone else he hated even more than he hated Chan.

“HA! You lost!” Lee Know yelled, clapping his hands excitedly. “Another win for me.”

JYP looked back to Lee Know. “That’s unfair. Give me another chance.” His tone was almost pleading. “Let’s do the dance battle we talked about earlier.”

Lee Know laughed in delight. “I can’t miss out on the chance to publically embarrass you, can I? Let’s do it.”

It was official, Chan had lost his nemesis to JYP after just a week. Lee Know hadn’t even spared him a glance, his attention to focused on JYP. What did JYP have that Chan didn’t? Except for superpowers, his own building, his own league of superheroes and questionable fashion sense?

“You start, “ Lee Know said. “Show us what you got.”

And just like that, JYP, head of the league and one of the most respected figures in the city, started _dancing_. In the middle of a fight, standing on the roof of his very own building, in front of all of his heroes and recorded by the reporters in the helicopter, just because Lee Know had told him to.

Shaking his hips to the non-existent music, JYP looked like the epitome of a middle-aged white uncle who was showing off his moves at the wedding of a relative, desperately trying to prove how cool and hip he still was. The respect Chan had for JYP was decreasing quickly.

Once he was done, no one said a word. A few of the league members remembered to politely clap for their boss but it was obviously forced and hesitant.

Lee Know’s shoulders were shaking violently, his eyes closed. It took Chan a moment to understand that he was laughing. Once he noticed that JYP was done, he let his laughter burst out loudly. “That’s it? Let me show you what dancing looks like.”

“GO LINO!” one of his accomplices cheered him, clapping for him.

He took a moment to calm down from his laughing and collected himself. Then, without any more warnings, he danced.

In that moment, Chan understood why Lee Know’s fighting felt like dancing. Lee Know was a dancer by heart. That was where his elegance came from, why his hits and kicks looked so graceful, why his fighting felt like art. Because Lee Know was an artist and a dancer, a man made of passion and beauty.

His movements were precise and expressive, telling a story of their own. It was just as much a story of power and might as it was of vulnerability and pain. He started out small, taking up as little space as possible, his movements shy and held back. Throughout the dance, he blossomed, grew bigger and bigger, stretching out his body and claiming more space for himself. It was hauntingly beautiful.

It was impossible to look anywhere else but at him, he dominated the roof and turned it into his stage. In that moment, Chan was nothing more but part of the audience and all he could do was admiring Lee Know’s play.

During JYP’s performance, the silence had been overbearing. Seeing someone dance without music had felt awkward and incomplete. But while he was watching Lee Know dance, Chan’s ears were filled by a compelling beat and unheard melodies. It felt like Lee Know was creating the music with his body.

As suddenly as it had begun, the dance ended. Lee Know seemed to stop mid-movement, his arms in the air. He left the story unfinished, leaving the audience aching for more. It was the perfect ending, Chan thought.

The roof erupted into cheers, mainly coming from Lee Know’s accomplices and Chan’s teammates, but the league heroes joined them after a moment of hesitation. The noise pulled Chan back into the moment. He was here to fight Lee Know, not to fall in love with his dancing. 

“I think the winner is obvious, “ Lee Know said once it got quiet again. The cheers from the crowd supported his statement.

JYP stepped back in defeat. “You won this round. But please, give me another chance. Let me prove myself.” It was hard for Chan to take him seriously, considering his dance moves earlier and the way he was basically begging Lee Know for mercy. “I know I can do better than that.”

“You said that the first four times, “ Lee Know waved him off. “You had your chances. And my least favourite person on this planet is here now, so I have better things to do.”

Only when his eyes landed on Chan did he realize that Lee Know was talking about him. A wave of relief washed over him. Despite the staring contest and dance battle with JYP, Lee Know still hated him the most. As soon as he looked at Chan, JYP was completely forgotten.

“CB97! Took you long enough to get up here.” Lee Know giggled, walking towards him slowly, leaving a disappointed JYP behind. “Did you enjoy the little work out I came up with for you?”

Chan clenched his fists. “Fuck you, “ he spit out. “The stairs were nothing. Felt like a walk in the park to me.”

“Is that why you sound out of breath? Or was it my dancing that took your breath away?” Lee Know winked at him. His game had started again, just like during their last encounter. This time, Chan wouldn’t let his playful behaviour fool him.

“I found your moves to be more vomit-inducing than breath-taking, to be honest, “ Chan fired back. He could never admit that watching Lee Know dance had made him _feel_ things. 

Lee Know grabbed his heart, feigning pain. “Harsh words, CB.” Only a few steps separated them from each other now and the close proximity to Lee Know made Chan forget all about the other people on the roof. They had entered their own world.

“Not as harsh as the little message you left me, “ Chan reminded him. “Very creative, by the way.”

“Did you like it?” Lee Know’s eyes sparkled at the mention of the message. “It was pretty rude of you to leave me on read.”

“You vandalized the wall of a bank, you didn’t send me a text message.”

“What’s the difference?” Lee Know asked. “A message is a message.”

Chan rolled his eyes. “I do think there’s a tiny difference there. If it was a text message, it wouldn’t have been out in the open for the whole city to read.”

“I wanted the city to know what kind of guy you are, “ Lee Know said. “But give me your number, I’ll send you a text next time.”

“It’s 032…” Chan stopped when he realized what he was doing. It would be highly unprofessional of him to give Lee Know his phone number. Wouldn’t it? “There’s no point, I would just actually leave you on read, “ Chan told him, even though he knew full well he would probably reply to his texts immediately.

“See, that’s exactly why I have to go out of my way to get your attention.”

“So you did this for me?” Chan looked around, noticing that everyone was staring at them in expectation, probably waiting for them to fight. “Attacking the JYP Tower?”

Lee Know scoffed. “Are you really dumb enough to believe that I did this for you? It’s not like my whole career and life revolves around you.”

“Well, so far, everything you did seemed to be directly targeting me.”

“Won’t argue with that, but this time is different. Getting to fight you is just a nice extra.” Lee Know looked at his wrist that was adorned by a simple watch. “Ten more minutes, just enough to kick your ass.”

“Ten more minutes ‘till what?” Criminals starting a countdown was never a good sign. Usually, it meant that there was a bomb hidden somewhere. If that was the case, Chan needed to get the location of it out of Lee Know immediately.

“Tea time, “ Lee Know replied, nodding towards his accomplices. “I promised my friends I would buy them cake after this.”

Chan was looking directly into his eyes while he was talking, noticing no suspicious movements, his pupils seeming completely normal as well. Almost as if he was telling the truth. It was more likely that he was just a practiced liar because there was no way he was waiting for tea time.

“So why the JYP Tower?” Chan asked, trying to stay on topic. He needed to know what would actually happen in ten minutes. “Do you have something against the league?”

“Personally, no, “ Lee Know said. “If you want to know the truth, I owe someone a favour.”

That confused Chan only more. Who did Lee Know owe a favour to? And why did that favour include attacking the JYP League and then holding a dance battle with JYP himself? “What kind of favour?”

“You’re just stalling time now, “ Lee Know accused him, checking his watch again. “Only nine minutes left, let’s fight.” With that, he stepped closer and got into position.

That didn’t leave Chan any other choice than doing so as well. His suit was turned off, as expected. It was just him and his still burning muscles. “This building will still be standing in nine minutes, right? There’s no bomb or anything like that?”

Lee Know laughed loudly, throwing his head back, but then his laughter turned kind of hysteric. “Fuck, I hope so. I really don’t wanna die today.”

“Me neither, “ Chan agreed. “Let’s go, then.”

Lee Know didn’t have to be told twice. As soon as Chan said those words, he leapt forward and aimed for Chan’s chin. Luckily, he could duck just in time to not get hit. He tried to use the moment to his advantage and get his own hit in, but Lee Know moved out of his reach quickly.

“Not bad, “ he said. “Feels like you’ve learned from last time.”

“It was an unfair fight, “ Chan argued. Then, he decided to be aggressive and bolted towards Lee Know, going for his stomach. Lee Know jumped out of the way seconds before Chan was even close to him.

“And you’ve gotten bolder, “ Lee Know stated another observation. “I like it.”

“Let’s see if you like it once my hands are wrapped around your neck.” This was more like Chan’s usual territory, trying to intimidate his opponent with threats.

Instead of being intimidated, Lee Know started laughing. “Oh trust me, I’ll enjoy it.”

He started circling Chan, forcing him to mirror the movement if he didn’t want Lee Know attacking him from behind. Their eyes were fixed on each other, both of them waiting for a sign, trying to predict what the other would do next. Maybe Chan was a bit too focused on staring into Lee Know’s eyes to actually catch any signs of movement, but Lee Know seemed to have the same problem.

It was Lee Know who broke their circle first, kicking Chan’s upper body with his leg. There wasn’t a lot of force behind the kick, so Chan barely stumbled back a bit. Judging from the pain he was feeling, Lee Know could have just as well hit him with a pillow. The only major effect the kick had on Chan was that it drew his eyes to Lee Know’s thigh. In real life, they looked even better than on zoomed in pictures online.

There wasn’t much time left and he really wanted to get a hit in so he could later on turn it around as if he won the fight. So, despite his legs being tired, he went for the CB97 kick. Much to his surprise, his foot actually connected with Lee Know’s body, making him fly to the ground.

“Oof.” Lee Know let out a sharp breath. “That wasn’t cool.”

“Grab him!” SpearB yelled loudly from the other side of the roof. “Don’t let him get away!”

Chan quickly put his foot on Lee Know’s chest, pushing him to the ground to prevent him from getting up again. “I guess that means no tea time for you today.”

Lee Know laughed, his loud and bubbly laughter. It was almost cute enough to make Chan take his foot away, but he stayed strong. “You’re right, you caught me, “ he admitted. His cheerful tone didn’t fit the situation at all. “But you forgot about something.”

In the next moment, he had his hand around Chan’s foot, grabbing it tightly. Chan tried to stabilize his stance, expecting the other guy to try and throw him to the ground. Instead of doing that, Lee Know winked at Chan.

He saw the spark of electricity rushing through Lee Know’s finger into his suit before he felt it. Then a sharp pain took over his foot, his body instinctively pulling it away from Lee Know. In a matter of seconds, Lee Know had rolled away from Chan and jumped up again.

“Nice try, CB.” Lee Know said. “This win goes to me, though.”

“We aren’t done yet, “ Chan said through gritted teeth.

Lee Know put a finger against his chest. “Yes, we are.” He pushed Chan lightly, but with the pain in his foot and his strained muscles in his thighs, it was enough to make him fall.

Checking his watch again, Lee Know stepped closer to Chan. “Two minutes. Time to say goodbyes, I would say.” He put his hand on Chan’s cheek, forcing his chin up so that he could look into his eyes. “I’m sorry our fight today was so short. I’ll make it up to you next time, okay?” His hand stroked the metal over Chan’s chin fleetingly.

The look in Lee Know’s eyes made his heart beat faster. His entire body was aching to feel the touch on his skin. He found himself wondering how it would feel, if his hands would be warm or cold, his skin soft or rough.

“Fuck you, “ was all Chan managed to say. 

Lee Know giggled, letting go of his suit and stepping back. “I love you too, babe.”

With those words, he turned around and ran over to his accomplices, grabbing their hands. Just the blink of an eye later, the three of them had disappeared.

The outside world crashed in on Chan again. He noticed the complete silence on the roof, the only noise still being the close-by floating news helicopter. Everyone was staring at the empty space they had left behind. 

J.One was the first to find words again. “Holy shit, they can really teleport.”

“No shit, “ SpearB replied. “9 literally told us so.”

“Yes but they can actually do it!” J.One’s eyes were wide, his mouth probably hanging open beneath his suit.

SpearB just patted his shoulder, before he started jogging over to Chan. He kneeled down by his side, offering his hand to help him up. “Are you okay, CB?”

Chan nodded, taking SpearB’s hand to pull himself up from the ground. His knees were weak, his foot still hurting, so he wrapped his arm around his teammate’s shoulder to stabilize himself. “I can’t believe I let him get away again. What kind of failure am I?”

“To your defence, there’s 50 superheroes on this roof who could have jumped in to help you but no one made a move, “ J.One said, pointing at the league. “Like what the fuck, guys? How did you let one single guy overpower you like that?”

The superheroes were too busy fighting among themselves to pay attention to 3RACHA. JYP still stood exactly where Lee Know had left him, his head lowered in shame. The others were currently attacking Yugyeom from GO7, who could control electricity just like Lee Know.

“I didn’t want to be struck by lightning!” He defended himself. “That shit is scary.”

“You’re immune to electric shocks, “ one of his teammates reminded him.

“Oh.” Yugyeom shrugged. “I forgot. But you guys didn’t do anything either, so it’s not my fault!”

That started an intense discussion of whose fault it was that then turned into complete chaos. People were calling out different heroes, questioning why they didn’t use their abilities against Lee Know. Someone was even brave enough to mention JYP’s name.

Chan just let out a sigh, sharing an awkward look with J.One and SpearB. This felt exactly the same as witnessing family fights while visiting a friend. And despite all the name calling, Chan couldn’t help but feel like this was his personal failure. It was his fault. 

The screaming was interrupted when the doors of the elevators opened and a group of journalists stormed in. Soon after the first, a second and a third elevator stopped at the top, releasing even more cameras and paparazzi onto the roof.

The last thing he needed was someone sticking a camera into his face. “Let’s just leave.”

“Shouldn’t we… stay?” J.One asked. “Talk to the League about what just happened?”

Chan shot a quick glance at JYP, but he was busy talking into about 20 microphones at once. “If they want to talk about it, they will contact us again. It’s best if we just leave.” Actually, he was just way too exhausted to stay and deal with the aftermath of this right now. All he wanted to do was go home and sleep.

SpearB looked at Chan’s face and seemed to understand. “Yeah, they need to solve their own issues first. We can come back once they have that sorted out.”

J.One wasn’t convinced, but when he saw that a reporter was approaching them, he made up his mind. “Okay. Let’s get the fuck out of here.”


	5. trap

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Doesn’t seem like we’ll be leaving any time soon.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im not entirely happy with this chapter, but after staring at it for like two weeks im just gonna leave it like it is. i think i mostly struggled with this bc its less playful than the last chapters and actually plot focused.... anyways, i hope you still enjoy reading it!!!

“What were you and Lee Know talking about?” SpearB asked while they were slowly making their way down the stairs. Chan still had his arm around his shoulder, J.One trailing a few steps behind them. “I only heard the beginning of your conversation but we were all wondering what it was about.”

“With _we all_ he means us and the 00s, “ J.One helpfully clarifies. “We really hit it off with them just now.”

“The 00s?” Chan asked, entirely confused by the name. Was that a new JYP group he hadn’t heard of yet? Maybe they were still in training. But when did J.One and SpearB get the chance to talk to them? He’d only seen them standing with two people…

“Lee Know’s friends! We asked them for their names and they introduced themselves as 009 and 003. So I decided to call them the 00s, “ he explained. “They were so funny, I love them.”

“If we met under different circumstances, I’m sure we would be friends, “ SpearB said. “They were clowning Lee Know so much, it was hilarious.”

Chan cleared his throat. “They are evil. They work with Lee Know.”

“Are we good just because we work with you?” SpearB’s tone got increasingly more serious. “Because I’m not sure I am, “ he added quietly.

“Of course we are good, we are superheroes!“ J.One yelled into the void of the staircase.

SpearB laughed at him, the heavy moment gone. Then he turned his attention back to Chan. “Now, tell us what Lee Know said to you. Why did they attack the JYP Tower?”

“We asked the 00s, but they said it’s Lee Know’s story to tell, “ J.One said.

“All he told me was that he was doing a friend a favour.” Chan tried to think of any hints he might have given during their fight. “And he was very set on leaving at a certain time, even counting down the minutes to that moment.”

“That’s weird, “ SpearB said. “To be honest, the whole situation was fishy again. I mean, we walked in on Lee Know and JYP playing Stone, Paper, Scissors with each other.”

“Yeah, what was that all about?” J.One sounded as confused as Chan felt. “It’s like last time. I don’t think they were there to cause any harm.”

Chan let out a sigh. “I don’t get it. This makes no sense, why would they risk attacking the biggest superhero league in the city just to play games against the head of the League?”

“Maybe annoying superheroes is Lee Know’s hobby, “ J.One theorized. “He surely seems to have fun doing it.”

“He’s dangerous, “ SpearB said. “I’ve never seen anyone with abilities like that. Taking away the power of a building like this? They must have a solid emergency system and he still managed to shut it down completely. He can do electroportation? Summon lightning? Give out random electroshocks? Usually, people’s abilities are more limited than that.”

It was weird to think about how dangerous Lee Know actually was. Despite all their fights, Chan didn’t view him as a serious threat to the city’s (or his own) safety. But maybe he was still deluding himself because of how casual and playful he went about everything he did. Maybe Chan was still underestimating him, just like Lee Know wanted him to.

“What I find the scariest is that we have no idea what he is gonna do next. He’s unpredictable, “ J.One added. “I mean, obviously he’s gonna show up around CB but we have no way of knowing when or where. This whole JYP Tower attack came completely out of the blue.”

They had almost reached the bottom of the staircase. Even though they had walked very slowly, the way down seemed a lot shorter than the way up. “At least he doesn’t seem to have an evil masterplan, “ Chan said, trying to optimistic.

“He could have one. Maybe he is trying to get rid of all the superheroes to take over the city, “ J.One suggested. That wasn’t completely out of the world, seeing as that had been the plan of several criminals before. No one had ever succeeded though, obviously.

“That won’t happen, “ SpearB said firmly.

When they finally arrived at the ground again, Chan felt a wave of relief to leave the enclosed space, hoping that he would never have to come back here.

His relief was washed away as soon as they left the staircase. The lobby of the JYP Tower was in complete and utter chaos. Staff members were crowding around the reception desk, others were running in and out of the room through different doors, the security guys were trying to fight off the press at the main entrance. The atmosphere was full of panic and distress.

“What the fuck is going on?” J.One asked. “It was really calm here during the attack, why are they freaking out now?”

“Maybe the journalists and bystanders outside are acting up.” Chan shrugged. “Let’s just go and let them deal with their own shit.” He really couldn’t bring himself to care about whatever issues the JYP League were having right now. All he wanted was to be cuddled and take a nap. 

“I’ll just ask real quick, then we can go, “ SpearB gently pushed Chan’s arm off his shoulder and made his way towards the reception desks. In moments like this, it felt like SpearB would have been a more suited leader for the team. He always managed to keep a cool head and get stuff done, no matter the situation. It was something Chan admired a lot about the younger.

He’d only been gone for a few moments when a loud siren started blaring throughout the lobby. It was cue for the security guards to close the entrance and locking it. Even more people were running around the room now, in and out, in and out.

“Dude, they have a siren like this but didn’t use it during the attack?” J.One shook his head. “What the fuck happened that they decided to use it now?”

Chan shrugged, feeling even more tired and defeated than before. “Doesn’t seem like we’ll be leaving any time soon.”

A few moments later, SpearB returned to the team. “They are shutting down the building. No one in, no one out.”

“But why?” J.One asked. “What happened?”

“As far as I understood, things got stolen. But because Lee Know cut off the power, they have no security footage of it. Plus, the whole building is in chaos because the electricity was missing for an hour and all the systems have to be properly started again. They are having a lot of technical issues, which makes it hard to tell what is actually gone.”

That was still only reason for more confusion for Chan, luckily J.One’s face lit up in understanding. “So Lee Know’s attack was just a diversion.”

Slowly, the puzzle pieces fell into piece in Chan’s head. Not causing any real harm, distracting everyone by playing pointless games with JYP. The favour he was doing for someone. They must have set a certain time which explained why he counted down the minutes in the end. It all started to make sense, slowly.

“I can’t believe no one suspected that sooner, “ Chan said. The whole league had been on the roof, watching Lee Know beat JYP in a dance battle and not for one minute did anyone think that someone else could be entering the building.

“No one knew that Lee Know was working with more than two people.” J.One shrugged. “It wasn’t like his last attack was a perfectly planned crime. It didn’t occur to me that there could be someone else working with them.”

“I should have figured it out when he said he was doing a friend a favour.” In the end, it was Chan who had the most clues. Out of all people on the roof, he had gotten the most information. It was his failure of piecing it all together that had let to this.

“That was five minutes before he ran away. I’m pretty that would have been too late to change anything, “ SpearB said. Rationally, Chan knew he was right. That didn’t stop him from blaming himself for what had happened.

J.One was about to say something, but he was interrupted by a staff member approaching them. “JYP would like you to join him in the meeting room, CB97.”

They shared a look. Of course Chan knew that a conversation would happen eventually, he just hadn’t expected it to be so soon. It also surprised him that he was called out individually, after all his teammates had arrived even sooner than him.

SpearB patted his shoulder encouragingly. “We’ll wait here for you.”

When someone said “meeting room”, the first thing Chan thought of was the comfortable and casual atmosphere in 3RACHA’s meeting room. Their meetings were, of course, still serious and mostly on topic but they didn’t feel forced and stiff. Chan liked their room with its squishy couches, colourful carpet and equipment (and Chan’s school work) lying all around. In a way, their meeting room felt like home to him.

The league’s meeting room was the complete opposite. It was a wide and open space, the dominating colours white and black. Through the big windows on one side, you could look down on the buildings and streets of the city. A long table was set in the middle of the room, rather uncomfortable looking chairs on both sides. Everything about it felt clean, functional, professional.

Right now, about half of the chairs were filled. At the head of the table, JYP was seated, quietly talking to some staff members. Next to him was a group older women and men dressed in business suits, so Chan assumed they were members of the executive committee. They were typing away on laptops and tablets, very focused on their work.

The rest of the seats were taken by superheroes of the league, mainly the leaders of the groups. In complete contrast to the executives, they were chatting with each other. Despite the tense atmosphere in the room, they were even quietly giggling among themselves.

The staff member who had taken Chan to the meeting room caught JYP’s attention with a slight wave. He looked up, his face lightning up when he spotted the newcomer. “Thank you for joining us, CB. You can take a seat over there.” He pointed at an empty chair, right next to ITZY’s Yeji. When he sat down, she greeted him with a small smile before turning back to her conversation with Jihyo.

A few moments later, JYP stood up, sending away the staff members surrounding him. That was enough to make the whole room go silent, bringing everyone’s attention to the front. “Now that we are all here, let’s begin.” JYP clapped his hands and a PowerPoint was projected on the empty wall next to him. The layout of the presentation reminded Chan a bit too much of Gowon’s.

“Today, our league has been brought to shame. In all of our decade long history, nothing like this has ever happened before. We have all failed, individually as well as collectively. Now we need to deal with the consequences of it.” JYP looked directly into the eyes of every person present. His stare was intimidating, almost enough to make Chan turn away.

The superheroes around the table lowered their heads. Chan recognized the guilt on their faces as the same dark feeling clenching at his own heart right now.

Once the silence started feeling too heavy and awkward, JYP proceeded. “As you all know, three people attacked our building this afternoon. They suddenly appeared on the roof, turning off all the power with their appearance. Once we arrived upstairs, they threatened us with lightning, coming up with silly games to pass the time. We let them fool us.”

“ _You_ let them fool you, “ one of the executives corrected. “We all saw the video of you dancing.”

“That’s already going around? Fuck.” JYP clenched his jaw, the embarrassment evident on his face.

The woman next to him had to have quite the high position, comfortably leaning back in her chair. “It’s your dancing that brought the most shame on us all today.”

A wave of supressed laughter went through the room. Chan didn’t even bother to supress his laughter, after all, JYP wasn’t his boss and had no power over him. His dancing had been completely ridiculous and he deserved to be laughed at for it.

JYP coughed. “Let’s not talk about that now. We have more important matters on hand.”

“Oh, I think we should talk about it though.” The woman next to him spoke up again. “You, the head of our organization, let a criminal beat you in ‘silly games’. That should be addressed right now, seeing as it was the reason someone could break into our building.”

“We can talk about it later.” JYP closed his eyes for a second, before he looked at his audience again. “For now, let me continue to brief you all on what happened today. While we were distracted and out of the building, someone else must have entered. Due to the complete power outage in the whole tower, we have no way of knowing how they entered, how many people were involved and what they looked like. In short, we have no traces of the actual thieves. All we know is that they work together with this man, Lee Know.” The PowerPoint showed a picture of Lee Know, taken during Chan’s first fight with him. It was a good picture, high quality, showing Lee Know’s mask as well as his outfit. For a second, Chan’s eyes drifted to his thighs, but he forced himself to look elsewhere.

“Up to this point, he has only ever been spotted with two accomplices, but today proved to us that he is working with even more people. We can’t be entirely sure if the thieves today work for Lee Know or if Lee Know works for someone else, we don’t know who truly is the mastermind behind these crimes. But we do know that this is a huge risk for our league and the whole city.”

Chan had never really thought much more about the idea that Lee Know might be working for someone else. He had given him no reason to think that, his actions had seemed too impulsive and emotional to be planned by another person. Then again, he did say the attack was a favour for someone, which might be his way of saying that it was a command by his boss.

“Lee Know and his two accomplices on the roof caused no damage besides our egos. However, Lee Know’s accomplices inside of the building really got us good.” JYP looked more than embarrassed to admit that.

“What did they steal?” Jihyo asked.

“They mainly targeted the research department and the equipment storage. So far, we know of several expensive materials that are missing, some of them still in their testing phase. It also looks like someone stole research data, but we are still investigating that.”

Chan raised his hand to indicate that he wanted to say something. “If the power was out, how did they steal data?”

JYP looked at him as if he had just asked the most stupid question ever. It felt a bit like Chan was back in high school. “They stole the files, obviously.”

“But the power was out, “ Chan repeated. “How did they have access to the files?”

“They went into the office of one of our scientists and took the files, “ JYP explained, talking very slowly and enunciating every syllable. “I really don’t see what the power has to do with that.”

“But the power was out, “ Chan said in disbelief. “How do the computers run without electricity?” In Chan’s imagination, the league had technology so advanced that it put Sci-Fi movies to shame. It wouldn’t surprise him if they had found a way to run their servers and computers without electricity, even though he couldn’t think of a way to do that.

Sungjin leaned over to him from the other side of the table. His voice was barely above a whisper, his tone conspiring. “He’s talking about physical files. We’ve been hacked before.”

Oh. How and why did an organization with access to the most efficient and secure technology still keep physical files? Chan was completely dumbfounded by the news. Of course, digital copies were at the risk of being stolen by hackers, but surely, JYP had the money to make sure that wouldn’t happen. Even 3RACHA had managed to find a pretty safe way to store their data digitally.

Maybe the league wasn’t as functional and perfect as Chan had always thought.

“What kind of research did they steal?” The woman next to JYP asked. The look on her face showed pure despair.

JYP let out an awkward cough. “Um… It’s mainly files from Project 23.”

That was enough to shift the atmosphere of the meeting. The reactions in the room made it clear that everyone knew exactly what Project 23 was. A few people gasped audibly, someone let out a whispered swear word, others just stared at JYP in disbelief. Only Chan had absolutely no clue what was going on.

He leaned over to ask Yeji about it. “What’s Project 23?”

“It’s about the origin of superpowers. Why and how people get superpowers, how to get rid of them, how to give someone artificial superpowers, “ Yeji explained quietly. “It’s been going on for years.”

Giving someone superpowers… Chan didn’t even know that was possible. He had always thought that you needed to be born with abilities. Stories like Spiderman, Captain America and Flash were just that – fictional stories. Humans were either born with an ability or not – there was no way to cheat Mother Nature on this.

Was it actually possible to gain abilities later on?

Chan knew he shouldn’t even be thinking about it, but it was all he ever wanted. For years, he had cursed himself for not being born with a superpower. He hadn’t let that stop him from making his dream come true, but he still inferior to the people around him. It was an open wound, his biggest insecurity. What if there really was a way for him to get a superpower?

“Do you think this is linked to the incident two years ago?” one of the executives asked, almost fearful. Everyone leaned forward, anxious to hear JYP’s answer. Apparently, it was a question they had all asked themselves.

“What incident?” Chan asked, loud this time. He was tired of being the only person in the room not to know about things.

“A few years ago, someone hacked into our servers and specifically accessed the files of Project 23. That’s the main reason we keep it and other important projects in physical files now, “ JYP explained to him, then he turned to the executive. “We can’t be sure, but it is a possibility. There has been a lot of progress on the project. This kind of information in the wrong hands could be fatal for all humankind.”

Now Chan really wondered what the scientists of the project had figured out. Did JYP’s last statement imply that they had figured out a way to give someone a superpower? Why else would it be “fatal for all humankind”?

“We have to find the culprit as fast as possible.” JYP said. “However, we have no trace of them.”

“Then we need to capture Lee Know, “ Jihyo concluded. “He’s shown up three times in barely a week, I’m sure it won’t be long ‘till he shows his face again. We just have to be ready to attack.”

“No offense, but he overpowered all of you on the roof earlier, “ an executive reminded her. “How exactly do you want to capture him now?”

The superheroes fell into a shameful silence again, uncomfortably shifting on their seats.

“That’s why I invited CB97 here, “ JYP announced, pointing straight at him with his hand. All the heads turned to Chan, fixing their agonizing stares on him. “He’s our best shot at getting to Lee Know.”

Chan was glad he was still wearing his suit and helmet. Otherwise everyone would have noticed his burning red ears and the embarrassment on his face. “I don’t think I can help you. So far, he’s won all our fights.”

“Do you know who he is? He did yell ‘I love you’ at you earlier, “ Yeji asked, immediately getting to the juicy questions.

“That was just teasing, “ Chan defended himself, but he felt the heat rising to his cheeks. 

“I see. So you guys tease each other? That must mean you are close, “ the woman next to JYP concluded.

“It’s just the usual banter between a superhero and a villain, “ Chan brushed it off. “It’s no big deal.”

“That has literally never happened to me so far, “ Sungjin said. “And I’ve been in a lot of fights. My ‘banter’ with villains looks very different.” The other superheroes murmured and nodded in agreement.

Actually, Chan agreed as well. No one had ever told him “I love you” after a fight. That was far from normal and maybe, just maybe, it was a bit gay. Or maybe that was just Chan being a single homosexual desperate for any kind of romantic affection. Even if it came from his nemesis.

JB was staring at him with a raised eyebrow. “I read a rumour online. It said you two are exes.”

“It’s fake. Lee Know and I first met last week at the bank robbery.”

“Are you sure?” Jihyo crooked her head. “He’s leaving messages for you, calls you babe… It seems pretty personal to me.”

“It’s possible that he works with or for someone I have pissed off. He’s never mentioned anything like that and I see no connection to any other groups. Still, it could be, “ Chan said. After the bank robbery and the message, he had spent hours browsing through their old cases looking for any hints. If Lee Know really did work for any of his old enemies, he was damn good at hiding it.

“What if he knows your civilian identity?” JYP suggested.

Chan shook his head. “Impossible. There’s only one person who knows about my civilian identity.”

JB had a wide grin on his face. “I’m the only one who knows? I feel honoured.”

“You know my real name?” Never in his life had Chan turned around to a person this fast, not even in a fight. His heartbeat was ringing in his ears, panic taking over his senses. How the fuck did JB know who he was?

“We shared a class last semester! We always share a secretive smile when we cross ways on campus.” JB’s brows were furrowed. “You really didn’t know I knew?”

“No!” Chan buried his head in his hands, the metal of his suit clanking together. “Fuck.”

“It’s fine, dude, “ JB patted his shoulder awkwardly. “I didn’t tell anyone. Besides the rest of GOT7, but you know. It’s no big deal.”

That made Chan feel even worse. He was ready to run out of the room right now. Instead, he lifted his head and tried not to lose is shit. “So… Only 8 people know about my civilian identity.”

Sungjin cleared his throat. “Make that 13. YoungK told us last year.”

“I know as well. But I swear, I only told Sana.” Jihyo admitted. “The others don’t know… I think.”

“Does anyone here not know my real name?” Chan asked, desperately looking around the room. They all avoided his eyes, including the executives.

JYP let out an awkward laugh. “We have a whole file about you, actually.”

Chan went back to hiding his head in his hands. He was already debating if he should get a new name, a new hair colour and flee the country. But he wasn’t the type of person to leave unfinished business behind and whatever he had going on with Lee Know, it wasn’t over yet.

“Can we get back to the topic now?” The woman next to JYP interrupted the conversation rather impatiently. “How are we going to catch Lee Know?”

“I’m glad you asked because I have come up with a plan already.” JYP clicked to the next slide of his PowerPoint. It showed a tiny animated figure that was probably supposed to be Lee Know. “It’s an old concept, but it works. We set up a trap for Lee Know.” On the presentation, a mousetrap appeared. “We only need some cheese to lure him in.” JYP looked right into Chan’s direction when he said those words.

Again, everyone was staring at him. Were they waiting for ideas by him? “I don’t know anything about him. I have no clue what will attract him, “ he said honestly.

“I know what will attract him.” JYP said, his eyes still fixed on Chan. “As I said, you are our best shot at getting to Lee Know.”

Understanding dawned on Chan. “Oh. I’m the cheese.”

JYP clapped his hands, grinning widely. He clicked on his remote and a tiny CB97 replica appeared on screen- right inside of the mousetrap. “You are our cheese, CB.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> please tell me what you think, feedback of any kind makes me incredibly happy and motivates me a lot!!!


	6. who's your mama?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I don’t want to be cheese, “ Chan announced.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> here it is! sorry that im taking so long to update, updates will definitely be a bit rare in the next two months bc some stuff is gonna be going on in my life, but i'm gonna try at least post one or two chapters during that time! anyways, i originally had planned a different scene for this, but you will get that one in the next chapter!!! i felt like the plan needed some more discussion, i hope its not too boring!!! enjoy the chapter <3

“I guess that’s all for today then.” It was half an hour later, frustration carved deeply into JYP’s expression. It was obvious that he hadn’t expected this outcome. “We will continue this meeting in two days.”

Chan let out a sigh of relief. He was glad to finally be able to leave the JYP Tower and go home- home meaning their own headquarters because he owed it to his team to brief them about what had just happened. After an hour in the professional meeting room of the league he was more than happy to go back to 3RACHA’s comfortable one.

He was about to stand up and leave when all the league members got up in one practiced motion. All eyes were expectantly fixed on JYP as he straightened his posture. “Keep your head up high, heroes. And always remember: when in doubt…”

Every person in the room (except for one very confused Chan) pressed a hand to their chest, close to their heart. Solemnly and in unison, they all finished the sentence together. “ _Shake that booty, that booty, booty.”_

That seemed to officially conclude the meeting because people started chatting with each other, slowly walking out of the room. Chan kept sitting for a moment to process what he had just witnessed. It was far from being the most irritating thing he had seen that day but it was the last push his brain needed to go into complete shutdown.

“Are you okay?” JB patted his metal shoulder, a friendly smile on his face.

Chan let out the longest and heaviest sigh in the history of humankind. “Shake that booty, “ he repeated in a monotone voice. “ _Shake that booty.”_

“We always end our meetings with JYP’s wise words. I personally feel that this specific quote has literally changed my whole complete life.” The expression on JB’s face was completely serious. He wasn’t joking around.

“How?” Unable to look at the guy next to him any longer, Chan buried his face in his hands. “Why? What? How?”

“It sounds simple at first, almost superficial, but if you really think about it, it has such a profound and meaningful… meaning.” His hands were waving around in the air theatrically. His eyes got suspiciously glassy as if he was about to start crying any second now. Chan also felt like crying but for a very different reason. “Whenever I’m in a fight, I think back to JYP’s words. They really hit deep, you know?”

He did not know, at all. Still, he was too tired to try and wrap his head around the league’s antics. So he nodded. “Makes sense. They are very… inspiring.”

“Exactly!” JB put a hand on his shoulder again. “You get me, Chan.”

Hearing him say his real name reminded him of another big revelation of that day. His identity was far from being the well-kept secret he thought it was. “Please don’t call me that while I’m in my suit.”

“Oh yeah, of course, CB. Actually, I’m kind of offended that I’m not the only one who knows your real identity, “ JB said, genuinely sounding a bit disappointed. “For a second, I thought we had a special bond.”

“Uh… well, I didn’t want anyone to know. I thought it was between me and my assistant, to be honest. Not even my teammates know.”

“Oh… Then I am smart for figuring it out. Wow. That’s cool.” He seemed to be pleased with that. “Anyways, I’m gonna go back to the dorm. I need to tell the others about all of this. See you on Tuesday!” He patted Chan’s shoulder one more time before he made his way towards the door.

“Bye.” That was probably Chan’s cue to get up as well as he should be doing the same thing as JB. While he waved after the other guy as he left the room, he thought about what his teammates would say to all of this. Would they encourage him to agree to the plan or do the opposite?

He was torn out of his thoughts when JYP himself suddenly sat down next to him. The room was empty except for them two and two of the executives who were quietly talking to each other.

“I’m sorry to put so much pressure onto you, but you need to understand how serious this situation is for us.” His tone was surprisingly gentle and patient, but Chan could see the desperation and a hint of anger in his eyes. “You are the key to Lee Know. We need you, Chan.”

It rubbed him the wrong way that he had used his real name that casually, as if they were friends or even just acquaintances. “CB97, “ he corrected him, his voice untypically harsh. “And I do understand how serious this situation is. But I’m part of a team and I can’t make decisions without talking them over with my crew.”

“Mr. Han and Mr. Seo would…” JYP started, trailing off when he noticed Chan’s confused expression.

“Who are you talking about?” Chan asked. Were those two of the executives that had been part of the meeting?

JYP furrowed his brows. “Han Jisung and Seo Changbin?”

Chan shook his head. “I don’t know these people. Do they work for the league?”

For some reason, that was funny to JYP. He started laughing loudly, looking at Chan in a mix of disbelief and amusement. “So you don’t know…” he said quietly, then he cleared his throat. “They don’t. However, it’s not important at all, just forget those names again. You don’t know them personally, you have never met them or talked to them, they have no connection to you. My mistake.”

“Okay, “ Chan said with a shrug. To be quite honest, he had already forgotten the two names. Was it Park Miseung and Jo Hangmin? Something like that, right?

“Back to your concerns.” There was a grin on JYP’s face. “J.One and SpearB surely wouldn’t mind if you made this decision for yourself. It has nothing to do with them, after all. And aren’t you the leader of 3RACHA anyways? You can make your own decision.”

“That’s exactly why it does concern them. I value their opinions and would never make such a big choice on my own, “ he tried to explain, but he knew JYP wouldn’t understand. “I need time to think it over myself anyways.”

“And I’m generously giving you two days to do that, “ JYP said. “Even though we really don’t have the time for _thinking._ What even is there to think about? You’re the perfect cheese! Don’t you want to help us catch Lee Know?”

“What if the trap doesn’t work and I get eaten?” Chan voiced one of his worries. After what he had witnessed today, he knew that he couldn’t exactly rely on the league to protect him. “I don’t want to be eaten by Lee Know.” ( _At least not like that.)_

“The trap will work! We have very competent heroes and I myself will do everything to keep you alive.” JYP tried to give him a reassuring smile but it came of more predatory than anything else. “You risk your life in meaningless fights on the street every day. You risk your life every time you get onto that bike of yours and roam through traffic! Your chances of dying in an accident are probably far higher than your chances dying on a mission backed up by 50 extremely capable superheroes and of course, me personally. We can do this together, Chan! Have a little faith in me.”

If JYP himself had asked Chan yesterday to have faith in him, he would have trusted him with his life without hesitation. After seeing him lose a dance battle against Lee Know though, he wasn’t sure if he could trust him at all. “I’m gonna think about it, “ he said.

“Don’t overthink it. Who knows what will happen to you if you don’t work with us…” JYP said in a low voice.

“Are you threatening me?”

JYP let out a fake laugh. “Of course not! I’m saving the threats until Tuesday.” Another laugh. “Just kidding! I would never threaten you. I’m just saying… who knows what will happen.”

“Sure, ” Chan scoffed. Did he really think he was being subtle and sly about this? Judging from his expression, he surely did.

“I should let you go now.” JYP smiled awkwardly, probably having noticed that Chan wasn’t intimidated by him at all. “So you can start your thinking.”

“Yeah, I should really get going.” Chan stood up, enjoying the short moment he could look down on JYP before he got up as well. “Thank you for calling for our help today.”

“I didn’t, “ JYP said in confusion. “I thought you came on your own because Lee Know was there and you two have this… thing.”

Chan thought back to the text messages he had gotten from Gowon. They had clearly said that someone from JYP had requested their presence, right? “Didn’t one of your people call us?”

“Why would we call little street fighters for backup? If we need help, we call the people over at SM or YG, “ he said, referring to two other big leagues, active in cities close to theirs. “I can assure you, we didn’t call for your help. I do have to say, I’m thankful to whoever did it. Seeing you and Lee Know fight on the roof was inspiration for our cheese plan.”

Confusion overpowered the bitter taste “little street fighters” had left in his mouth. If the league hadn’t contacted them… who else could have done it? Something about the whole situation didn’t feel right to Chan. “Maybe my assistant misunderstood something.” He trusted Gowon, but he knew that the calls went by quickly and sometimes it was hard to catch all the information.

“I’m sure that’s what happened. Chaewon isn’t the most capable assistant, is she? I never really understood why you hired her, “ JYP said in a condescending tone.

Despite the fact that JYP seemed awfully informed about his team and even knew Chan’s civilian identity, he still had gotten Gowon’s name wrong. That was a small relief for Chan. “She is actually really competent and good at her job, “ he defended her.

JYP nodded, even though he didn’t seem convinced by it. They were standing awkwardly between the chairs and the table, silence hanging between them. Chan took that as his sign to finally leave.

“I’m gonna go now. We’ll see each other on Tuesday.” With that, he left the meeting room, thousands of thoughts flying around in his mind.

“I don’t want to be cheese, “ Chan announced.

Even he could hear how tired his voice sounded, additionally muffled by the pillow he was lying on. When they had gotten back to the headquarters, he had collapsed on the worn-out couch like that. Now, twenty minutes later, he still had no energy to move.

The rest of the team was sitting around a little table, eating the take-out Gowon had gotten for them. Despite his growling stomach, not even the smell of the food was enough to make Chan get up. He had already decided he would sleep on this couch tonight. There was no way he could drive his bike back to his apartment in his condition. That had happened many times before, so he always kept spare clothes and everything else he needed in the morning at the headquarters.

“JYP’s right though. This could be our only chance of catching Lee Know, “ J.One said with a full mouth. “I don’t see much of a choice here. If we want to get Lee Know, we should work with the league.”

“That’s the problem, though. We wouldn’t be working _with_ the league. They want CB to work _for_ them, “ SpearB argued. His eyes were as dark and intimidating as they usually only were during their fights. His expression had been like that since Chan had told them about the cheese plan.

Gowon leaned forward to take a better look at SpearB. “Is that a bad thing? It’s basically like becoming a part of the league, even if it’s only one mission now. It might turn into something permanent.”

“You think they will offer CB a contract if this goes well?” J.One asked.

Just thinking about that possibility made Chan’s heart beat faster, but there was a bitter taste to it. “I don’t want something permanent if it’s not for all of us. Either they sign us as a team or not at all.”

J.One moved a bit closer to put a hand on Chan’s shoulder. “You’ve always wanted to join the league. Don’t let us get in the way of your dream.”

That was sweet of him to think, but entirely displaced. “Joining the league isn’t my dream. My dream is to fight the evil in this city – with you guys by my side.”

His words lit up J.One’s face, even though it was half hidden by the shadow of his cap and the slipped face mask. “That’s good because my dream is for 3RACHA to become the best superhero team in the world. Would be kind of hard without our leader.”

Chan couldn’t help but smile at his teammate.

“Oh, we are sharing our dreams right now?” Gowon looked up from her food, interrupting the soft moment between Chan and J.One. “My dream is to be able to play Nintendo all day. Oh, and become a superhero!”

That was news to Chan. “You want to become _what?”_

She started laughing loudly. “Do you think it’s my ambition to be your assistant forever? I came here to learn from you and as soon as I feel ready, I will become my own hero.”

Even though she lacked the fighting experience and had no abilities, Chan did in no way doubt that she would become an exceptional superhero one day. He felt pride bloom in his chest as he thought of her fighting the bad guys in her own suit. “You should’ve told me. I can help you work towards that dream.”

“You’re already helping me, dumbass. Let’s get back to the topic. What are you going to do about JYP?”

Chan let out a sigh. He wish he had more time to think it all through, but JYP had already been reluctant about just giving him two days. As a good leader, Chan didn’t want to make any hasty decisions, especially not without a team discussion beforehand. “What do you guys say?” he asked.

“Don’t do it, “ SpearB spoke up first. “I don’t trust the league. They just want to use you.”

“They have the same goal as us. We also want to catch Lee Know, right? So is it really that bad if they ‘use’ CB?” J.One asked.

SpearB put down his food. “They don’t have the same goal as us. We want to catch Lee Know so he doesn’t do any harm. They want to catch Lee Know because he stole from them. He humiliated them today and he might do it again in the future. That’s the reason they want to catch him.”

“I don’t see anything wrong with that. We don’t know what he stole, but they must want it back and I get that, “ J.One countered.

JYP’s cheese plan had somehow managed to push the stolen research out of Chan’s mind. And frankly, he really didn’t want to think about the meaning of it. Still, that wasn’t information he could keep from his team. He adjusted his face mask and pushed himself up into a sitting position. “I know what was stolen.”

Three pairs of eyes turned to him in shock. “You know? What is it?” SpearB asked.

“Files from what they call Project 23.” Chan quickly explained what he knew, realizing even more how little it was. There was no way for them to know how progressed the research was, what someone would be able to do with the knowledge the files held. 

“Shit. Giving someone superpowers? I never thought that was possible.” J.One’s eyes were wide, mirroring the exact shock Chan had felt during the meeting with JYP. Just like every hero Chan knew, he and SpearB had been born with natural abilities.

“They are trying to create superhumans, “ SpearB said, crossing his arms in front of his chest. “And they don’t keep the files about it safe?”

“Well, they only keep them as physical copies.” Chan explained. “A few years ago, someone hacked their systems and looked at Project 23. They thought keeping them as physical files would keep them safe.”

J.One jumped up and started pacing around. “Fucking hell.”

His movement made Chan nervous. “Can you sit down again?”

Ignoring Chan, J.One kept on walking. “You realize what this means, right? Lee Know must have known that there were only physical copies of the files. He wouldn’t have shut down the entire electricity in the building otherwise.”

“He got inside information, “ Gowon concluded. “Maybe even works with someone who is part of the league.”

SpearB nodded. “It makes sense. Otherwise, he has no way to even know about the project, right?”

“Unless…” Chan crooked his head. “What if he works with the person who hacked the files the first time?”

“Maybe he _is_ the person from back then, “ Gowon theorized. “It’s possible, right?”

The league hadn’t told him how long ago the incident actually was, but Lee Know had only shown his face a mere week ago. “Why would he act publically now, then? And why would he start by robbing a bank and leaving a message for me? It doesn’t add up.”

“You told us that Lee Know said he’s doing a friend a favour. If there are only physical files in the JYP Tower, Lee Know is literally the perfect weapon to get to them. What if someone was using him to get to the files?” J.One suggested.

“Could be, “ SpearB said. “On the other hand, this could all be part of Lee Know’s masterplan. He might want us to underestimate him.”

That was something Chan constantly worried about. Something about Lee Know was weird, suspicious, different than all other criminals they had encountered. Even though he seemed playful, they had all the reason not to trust him one bit. Chan was pretty sure that he was playing a dangerous game with them.

J.One didn’t seem entirely convinced. “His attacks are too random, too disconnected. Attempted bank robbery? Mocking CB in a message? And now suddenly he steals top secret research from the league but while someone is doing it for him, he is playing rock, paper, scissors with JYP? He specifically targets CB but actually wants data from the league? It makes no sense. I don’t see a big masterplan here.”

Putting it like that confused Chan even more than before. There really was no connection between Lee Know’s actions. Which then again could be the genius behind it all.

“It’s possible that he has a personal dislike for CB but his actual goal is building an army of superhumans and take over the city, “ Gowon said. “Duality, you know.” The word didn’t make much sense in the context, so Chan assumed she was just throwing around expressions she had picked up online. 3RACHA nodded along anyways.

“Actually, his hatred for CB and stealing the files might be related.” SpearB said, thoughtfully. “You have never met Lee Know before, right?” He turned to Chan, who confirmed it with a nod. “Then why does he hate you? We’ve only ever operated as a team, no solo missions. But, “ he made a dramatic pause. “There is one thing that sets you apart from us two and every other superhero in this city.”

“My unique alias?” he guessed, thinking back to his conversation with Minho a few days ago.

Unlike him, J.One had understood what SpearB was getting at. He stopped walking and pointed at Chan. “You’re the only superhero without any abilities.”

“Oh.” In the end, despite all of his hard works and efforts, he would always be the superhero without a superpower. Hearing that was worse than getting punched, even though J.One was just stating a fact. “You think that’s why Lee Know is targeting me?”

“It makes sense, “ Gowon said. “It’s a connection between you and Project 23.”

“I still don’t get it. If he wants to find out more about abilities, I’m literally the last person he should come at.”

SpearB shook his head. “I don’t think his goals with you are entirely practical. There’s definitely an emotional aspect involved.”

That seemed to be logical to all of them except Chan. Their theory didn’t convince him, in his eyes, the theft of the files and his fights with Lee Know didn’t have any deeper meaningful connection. “Whatever his goals are, he needs to be stopped.”

“Yeah, “ J.One agreed, finally sitting down on the floor again. “Especially if he has or knows who has the files. We need to get them back to JYP before someone builds an army of superhumans.”

“How do we know the league isn’t the one building an army? If these files are so dangerous, I don’t think they should be in the hand of a rich organization like the league.” SpearB was furrowing his brows. “We can’t trust them.”

“EAT THE RICH!” Gowon yelled out of nowhere. “We should never trust rich old men.”

“They have never done anything to harm the city, “ J.One said. “I think we have to trust them in this case. We don’t really have a moral choice here. Working with the league is our best shot at catching Lee Know.”

“Lee Know had a dance battle with JYP today and JYP lost. 50 league heroes were standing on that roof watching while their dangerous and secret files were being stolen from right under their feet. How are they our best shot?” SpearB asked.

“You said it, B!” Gowon hyped him up. “We don’t need those ugly league bitches.”

After today, Chan agreed that the league’s competency was very questionable. “Well, they still have better equipment, more money and 50 people with superpowers. Our chances without them are pretty low.”

“And we have one CB, one SpearB, one J.One and most importantly… one Gowon!” Gowon extended her arms. “They need CB as bait to get Lee Know. We don’t need them.”

Chan smiled a bit at her enthusiasm and optimism. It was refreshing to see, especially because he was still struggling to feel the same way. Even though SpearB and Gowon’s arguments had eased part of his worries, he still felt like it would be a mistake to not work with the league. He let out a sigh. “I need to sleep about this.”

“Valid, “ J.One said. “JYP gave you till Tuesday, right? So you don’t need to make a final decision right now.”

“Yeah, you need to rest.” SpearB shifted around to face Chan, pushing a box of rice towards him. “But first, you should eat something.”

Chan looked at his teammate fondly, feeling a sudden rush of gratitude towards them. He was the leader, yet here they were, taking care of him instead. Still, it was nice to know that he had people to rely on. He got up and sat down on the floor next to them. “Give me some of the chicken.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> if you like this fic, pls leave feedback! it motivates me so much and also makes me very happy!


	7. road not taken

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Now tell me, why were you threatening the gym equipment?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> little disclaimer:  
> 1) i decided to add chapter titles to make it easier to find things and also bc i really wanted to name this chapter and just naming one chapter wouldve been weird so i added titles to all of them. all of them are song titles that (sometimes) fit the chapter!!!!
> 
> 2) i also changed the formatting of text messages bc there are a few in this chapter. pls tell me if u dont like it so i can improve it!!!
> 
> 3) also editted the tags the plot thing was just really wrong at this point bc theres. plot. 
> 
> anyways, hope you enjoy this chapter!!! lets pls ignore that i have three finals next week but im spending my time writing and editting....... anyways, ive editted the beginning of the chapter like 1000 times but i only vaguely skimmed thru the end so sorry for any mistakes there or if its just a mess entirely. okay ill shut up now pls enjoy <3

“I’m gonna beat you today.” Chan said in a low voice, trying to sound as intimidating as possible. To add to the desired effect, he was giving his opponent his deathliest glare. This was a fight over his honour and Chan was ready to give it his everything. Including his best threats and insults ever. “You have no chance, you dumb stupid useless piece of shit. You suck.”

Stairmaster 3000 didn’t reply for obvious reasons, the main being that it was only a chunk of metal and plastic. Instead, it was entirely unaffected by Chan’s word, staying cold and silent in its position.

Despite his sore thigh muscles from Sunday’s stairclimbing, Chan’s spite had brought him to the gym, pulling him straight to the Stairmaster. He had made it his new goal to never get into a situation like that again, so additional workouts were the only way to go.

More than that, he needed to clear his head. He had spent the entire day before thinking about the cheese plan and what his next step should be. Last night, he had barely been able to sleep because his thoughts had been racing around in his head. When he had woken up at 5 am unable to fall asleep again, he had decided to use the time productively and go to the gym.

Now here he was. Just that he couldn’t even find the strength to get on the machine. Only the thought of climbing stairs was enough to make him want to throw up. Standing in front of it and cursing at it like a complete fool sounded like a way more inviting alternative. “I’ll kill you, “ he growled. “Just you wait, I will kill you.” It wasn’t as satisfying as threatening living opponents in fights, but it still made him feel good to let out his frustration at least verbally.

“I want to see you try, “ someone replied.

For a moment, Chan was convinced that it had come from the Stairmaster, which led to three horrifying possibilities: 1) the Stairmaster had developed the ability to talk (rather unlikely, seeing as it was a machine), 2) the Stairmaster had a built-in voice service (wouldn’t be the first piece of gym equipment to yell at Chan to do better) or 3) Chan was hallucinating voices now, possibly due to exhaustion (not completely unlikely, but highly concerning).

When he turned around, all his theories were proven wrong and he was faced with a reality that was even more surprising to him. Lee Minho was standing just a few meters away from him, an amused grin on his face.

“What are you doing here?” Chan asked. He had never seen Minho at the gym before and to be honest, he wouldn’t have taken him for the kind of person who would come there at 6 am on a Tuesday morning.

“Working out. What else?“ Minho rolled his eyes at him, pointing at his athletic clothes to underline his point. He was wearing black leggings and a white tank top, a headband keeping his hair out of his face. The outfit made him look like he had jumped right out of a commercial for sportswear.

Chan crooked his head. “I’ve never seen you here.” Seeing as their headquarters were right next door and the fact that he came to the gym almost every day, that was weird. How had he never run into Minho before?

“It’s close to our college and cheap. Lots of students come here, “ Minho said with a shrug. Did they? Chan couldn’t recall ever meeting anyone from college at the gym, but maybe he was just always too focused on his workouts to notice.

“Do you usually come this early?” It was only half past six. On any normal day, Chan would still be lying in his bed. Not today though, not with the big decision he had to make in a few hours.

“Every morning.” From what Chan knew about him, he would have never guessed that he was the kind to work out every day, especially not at the gym. Then again, what did Chan really know about him? Apparently, not a lot. “Why are _you_ here this early? I’ve never seen you around at this time.”

Chan rubbed his neck, awkwardly looking away from Minho. “Need to clear my head a bit. I couldn’t really sleep so... here I am.”

“Oh.” Minho gave him a genuinely warm smile. “I know days like that. It’ll get better.”

Chan smiled back. “I hope so.” The few words of encouragement made the weight of his shoulders already feel a bit lighter. “Thanks.”

Minho nodded back to the Stairmaster. “Now tell me, why were you threatening the gym equipment?”

“Because it’s my biggest enemy, “ Chan declared dramatically, also looking back to the Machine Of Evil. It was still staring him down, challenging him to get on. His muscles hurt just thinking about the movement.

“What about me?” Minho said quietly, just loud enough for Chan to hear.

He didn’t understand the comment at all, utterly confused what he might be referring to. What did he have to do with Chan’s feud with stairs? “What do you mean?”

Minho waved him off. “It’s not important. What has the Stairmaster ever done to you, though?”

His mind went back to the eternity he had spent in the staircase of the JYP Tower, how long and painful climbing up these stairs had felt. “It’s not the Stairmaster, “ Chan replied. “It’s stairs in general. I just hate stairs.” Actually, Lee Know was to blame for the mental and physical torture he had been through, but it was easier and more efficient to direct his anger towards something he could actually confront and beat.

A gleeful giggle escaped from Minho’s throat. “Bad experiences in the past?” he questioned.

“You could say so.” Chan rubbed over his thighs, grimacing at the small sting of pain he felt. “Pretty recently, actually.”

“Oof, that sucks, “ Minho said but his grin made it clear that he didn’t feel the least bit bad about it. On the contrary, he seemed delighted to see Chan in pain. “Still sore from it?”

Chan sheepishly nodded. “Can’t believe I’ve been coming here for years but get sore from climbing up a few stairs.”

“That’s no surprise if you just come here and diss the machines. You do know that you need to actually work out to build up muscles, don’t you?” Minho asked, squinting his eyes a bit. There was a playful grin playing around his lips.

That made Chan laugh out loud. “Yeah, I pay the 20$ membership fee every month because I love insulting dead pieces of metal. It’s my hobby.”

Minho joined his laughter, a brighter sound this time. It reminded Chan of something, but he couldn’t quite place it. “Well-spent money, I’d say.”

“Would be better spent if the Stairmaster would actually talk to me. Maybe then I’d get the motivation to work out, “ Chan said. “I feel kind of ignored, not gonna lie.”

“The machine can smell that your threats are just empty words. Your lame insults aren’t worth the master’s time, “ Minho continued his teasing.

Lame insults? That was a harsh accusation. “I thought my insults were good, “ Chan defended himself, crossing his arms. “What’s wrong with them?”

“You were just rattling off negative adjectives like a 3 year old who just learned those words. True geniuses of insulting know just what to say with only a few words.” There was an almost proud grin on his lips as he went on. “Do you remember the message that Lee Know person left for ED85?”

Chan almost let out a wince at how much Minho had butchered his name. Yeah, the media regularly got the numbers wrong, turning his name into CB98 or CB67. It was rare that someone fucked up as badly as Minho, it actually being the first time Chan heard his alias being said wrong out loud. “You mean CB97, “ he corrected instinctively, trying not to sound _too_ offended.

“Oh, right. That’s it.” It was obvious that he didn’t actually care. “Anyways, that message is a perfect example. Easy language, simple words, hitting all the right spots. It’s not actually offensive in any way, but it still hurts. It’s perfect.”

“It was humiliating.” After the words left his mouth, Chan realized what they might sound like. Before there was time for Minho to think too hard about it, he clarified his words. “Um, I mean, uh, I’m sure CB97 thought it was humiliating.”

There was no reaction to Chan’s awkward stuttering, Minho just nodded at his words. “See? It worked perfectly.”

Chan scoffed. “Definitely wouldn’t put it like that.”

“My point is, you have a lot to learn from Lee Know. Maybe then people would take you seriously. By people I mean the Stairmaster, obviously.” Minho took his phone out of the pocket and checked the time. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, unlike other people I’m actually here to work out.”

“Oh yeah, I didn’t want to keep you from that.” Chan nodded at the machine in front of them. “I should probably also get started.”

“Good luck with that, “ Minho said with an amused tone. Then he raised his hand to wave at him one last time before he walked away.

Chan watched after him, finding his eyes being drawn down to his ass. He quickly forced himself to look up again, not wanting to be one of the creeps who spend their time in the gym checking out butts and making people uncomfortable with their disrespectful staring. _Shake that booty, that booty, booty_ suddenly echoed in his head for some reason. Damn, he really wished he could forget everything he had witnessed on Sunday.

Still, he kept looking, even as Minho put in airpods and started running on a treadmill. Only when another person walked through his line of sight did he remember that he wasn’t there to stare but to _fight._ So, he turned back to Stairmaster 300 and clapped his hands. “Are you ready for this, you asshole? Let’s go.”

An hour later, he was just a puddle of sweat and aching muscles sitting on the locker room bench. He had spent a good amount of time of that hour fighting against the stairs, only eventually moving on to other machines. Despite the pain in his body, he felt better than he had the last few days. Working out had actually helped him clear his head, just what he had needed so badly.

Well, watching Minho work out from across the room had also done a pretty good job at distracting him. There was just something very fascinating about him and the way he moved, the way he pushed himself, the way he smiled when he accomplished something.

So yeah, for a beautiful hour Chan had managed to escape his dilemma and his thoughts about Lee Know, JYP and cheese. Checking his texts on his phone made it all come crashing back in, though.

**Gowon  
** _im @ the headquarters rn with some breakfast, come by before u go to class_

_  
_ **J.One  
** _just do what ur gut tells u  
I trust ur gut and u  
u got this_ **  
** _bro r u okay??? u alive????_

**SpearB  
** _its up to you, cb  
im here if u wanna talk_

He heard the noise of the locker room door being opened, but he didn’t bother looking up. Instead, he read through his team’s messages again and let out a deep sigh. After a whole afternoon of discussing it, turning the problem over and over again, their conclusion had been that it was Chan’s decision. They told him to do what he deemed as right – just that he had no clue what the right thing to do was.

After quickly replying to Gowon that he was at the gym and that he would come up in a minute, he turned his phone back off again and buried his face in his hands.

Suddenly, someone gently tapped on his knees. Chan looked up to meet Minho’s eyes. The warmth from earlier was back, an empathetic smile adorning his lips. “You look like you lost your fight against the Stairmaster, “ he said, probably trying to lighten the mood.

Chan couldn’t help but chuckle a bit at that. “Stairmaster 3000 is just too strong for me. I can’t win.”

“I’m sure you’ll have better luck next time, “ Minho assured him. Despite the hour of workout he had just gone through, he managed to look like a model. Sure, sweaty and less put together than before, but still unfairly attractive. It really was a miracle that he hadn’t been scouted by Nike or Adidas yet.

“Maybe not next time, “ Chan said, channelling his inner optimist. “But eventually, I will come out victorious.”

Minho gave him an encouraging nod. “Of course you will.” Then he walked over to the other side of the room, opening up his locker. “Are you heading to class now?” he asked as he started getting ready to shower.

“I’ll get breakfast before that, but after that, yes, “ Chan replied. “What about you?”

“Same.” He awkwardly shuffled through his bag, avoiding to look at Chan. “Want to get breakfast together?”

Much to Chan’s own surprise, he didn’t hesitate to answer. Minho was offering him another perfectly good distraction and he would be a fool not to take it. “Sure.”

A wide smile spread on Minho’s face as he turned around now. “Really? Okay. Let’s meet outside in ten minutes?”

Chan nodded, returning the smile. He felt a bit bad for ditching Gowon, especially because she had gotten breakfast specifically for him which was a rare occurrence. But if he had to choose between talking about the cheese plan and being teased for literally everything he did, he really didn’t have to think hard about it.

**Chan  
** _change of plans! I ran into a friend and he asked me to get breakfast, sorry :(_

**Gowon  
** _no biggie!!!! more food for me lmao_

As planned, they met in front of the gym a bit more than ten minutes later. Minho was already waiting for him as Chan left the building, typing on his phone. When he noticed his presence, he looked up with a smile. “Where do you wanna go?”

“I don’t care. If you work out this early every day, I’m sure you know where to get good food, “ Chan said, then he gestured forward. “Just lead the way.”

Minho smiled as they started walking. “There’s this coffee shop down the road. My best friends both work there, so that’s where I always go.”

“Hwang Hyunjin?” Chan asks, remembering that he had seen the two hang out together at college.

“And Lee Felix. You know, the other Australian.”

Chan remembered the cute freckled guy, even though “the other Australian” was pretty much all he knew him by. He was also pretty sure that Felix was in the dance club along with Hyunjin and Minho. “I’ve seen him around.”

“You two would get along, I think, “ Minho told him.

“Because we’re both Australian?” During the few occasions he had socialized with his classmates, he had been asked several times if he was friends with Felix for that very reason. Of course he understood why people would think that and he had thought about approaching Felix just to have someone to bond over his home country with, but he just didn’t have the time or motivation to actively make new friends.

“That, too. But also personality wise. You two have similar vibes.”

Chan smiled. “I’m excited to get to know him sometime, then.”

They walked next to each other in silence for a bit. Chan could sense that Minho wanted to say something though. He was stealing glances at him and clearly hesitating to just get it out. “What it is?” Chan asked, deciding to put an end to his struggle.

“Um… I’m sorry to ask… but do you want to talk about what’s going on?” Minho was acting uncharacteristically shy, still not properly looking into his direction. It was endearing and Chan couldn’t help but smile at it.

His first instinct was to dismiss the question and change the topic again. But something in him wanted to open up to Minho, wanted to show him at least the vague shadow of what he was struggling with. He didn’t know why – they were far from being friends and getting along. Maybe it was just the moment that made him feel that way. Maybe he was just happy to have someone to listen to him who didn’t know the details of what was going on. 

Before he answered, he considered his words carefully as to not give away anything too suspicious. “I have to make a big decision today, “ he finally said. “And I’m not sure what’s the right thing to do.”

Minho crooked his head. “Are you not sure what’s the right decision for you or for the people around you?”

“Both, “ Chan confessed. On one hand, he was worried about his own integrity as a hero and his own safety. On the other hand, there could be millions of lives at risk if he made the wrong move. Just that there was no way for him to know what the wrong move was.

“Hmm, “ Minho said thoughtfully. “Do you want to hear my advice?”

Chan nodded immediately, curious what Minho could be telling him now.

“Don’t be too obsessed with finding the right way. Sometimes, quite often actually, there is no such thing. There’s just several paths you can choose from and you can never know for sure what you will encounter along the paths. I mean, you can try to see what’s gonna come, look as far ahead as you could possibly see, but you can never really know what’s going to happen.”

“So how do I decide, then?” Chan asked.

“Look at all the options you have. Really look at them, because there might be some you missed or haven’t noticed before, “ Minho said. “And then just trust yourself and your instinct. Don’t be swayed by what others are saying and don’t give into your own fear. You will find your own path and if you don’t, you can make your own path.”

Were there any options Chan had overlooked so far? Up to now, he had only ever seen two choices: agree to JYP’s plan or catch Lee Know without the league. What if there really was a third path to take in this situation?

“You seem to have thought a lot about this, “ Chan observed. The way Minho was talking right now made him sound like a 100 year old man who had gained insight on life through decades of trial and error rather than a college student. 

Minho turned to look at the pavement as he answered. “I made a big decision myself not too long ago. Back then, I thought a lot about this.”

Chan wondered what he could possibly be talking about. It seemed to be quite important for him, so it must have been a rather life changing decision. He studied his face carefully as he asked his next question. “Do you regret the choice you made?”

“Not at all, “ Minho replied. “I created my own path, despite everyone else telling me that I shouldn’t. It was scary and hard but I don’t regret it.”

“Wow, that must have taken a lot of courage, “ Chan commented. He was honestly impressed by everything he was learning about Minho today.

“Yeah.” Minho chuckled. “I had a good motivation, though. Plus, I think you always live with less regrets if you jump over your fear and go for what you want.”

Chan wondered what he was afraid of. He was afraid of Lee Know – or whoever he was working with - abusing the research data of Project 23, which could mean a threat to the entire city and many lives. He was afraid of league’s true intentions and what they could be planning with the data. He was also afraid of what could happen to him and his team if he agreed to JYP’s plan. So, which fear was he supposed to jump over?

They continued walking in silence, Chan’s mind filled with thoughts. The advice helped him view the problem from a new perspective, but there was still a lot of factors to consider. Caught up in his own mind, he almost didn’t notice when Minho stopped in front of a small coffee shop.

“We are here. Come on.” He had to grab Chan’s arm to stop him, giggling slightly at his lost expression.

He pulled him inside of the little shop that was filled with people, the queue ending just a few steps from the door. Chan didn’t recognize anyone, but by the numbers of people that Minho greeted with a nod, there were probably lots of students from their college here.

Minho seemed to spot a friend of his because his polite smile grew into a genuinely happy one and he started waving someone over. Chan watched as a blonde boy made his way over to them, a big grin on his face and a cup of coffee in his hand. From a far, he looked pretty small, mostly because he was wearing an oversized hoodie he was almost drowning in. With his soft cheeks and kind brown eyes, he looked pretty cute.

For some reason, he looked very familiar to Chan. If he was a student at their college, he might’ve seen him on campus before. 

“Hey, Minho!” The blonde greeted cheerily before he looked over at Chan. For a second, his eyes went wide in surprise but the moment quickly passed and he returned to a friendly expression. “Chan, right?” he asked.

Okay, so the other guy knew his name. That either meant that they had shared a class before or that they had met at a party but Chan couldn’t quite place him into either of those.

Minho nodded. “Yeah, this is Chan. Chan, this is Han Jisung. He goes to our college and is also a regular here.”

“What can I say? I’m running on like three hours a sleep a night, I wouldn’t make it without caffeine.” Jisung laughed, lifting the cup in his hand.

Damn, even his laugh and voice were familiar, just like his name. They _must_ have met and talked to each other before.

“You should really work on your sleeping schedule, “ Minho commented. “It’s not healthy.”

Jisung just waved him off. “Between assignments and work, sleep isn’t really a priority for me. Do you wanna know how much sleep I got last night?” He seemed rather proud of himself, so Chan was expecting a big number.

“I don’t, “ Minho said, already letting out a long sigh. “But tell me, please.”

“50 minutes, “ Jisung announced, way too energetic for the information he was just revealing. “The only reason I’m standing right now are the 2 espressos I just had. My heartbeats going a bit crazy, though.”

He earned a light slap on his arm from Minho for that. “You need to take better care of yourself! Maybe you should quit your job, it’s causing too much stress for you.”

Jisung shook his head. “I can’t. You know how much my job means to me.”

“I don’t get what’s so exciting about delivering pizza. And they always call you in at the most random and weirdest hours. I’m sure that’s not even legal, “ Minho argues. By the way the two were acting, this was clearly a conversation they had had before, probably more than once.

“It gets a bit much sometimes, “ Jisung admitted. “But I love doing it. It makes me feel like I have a purpose, you know?”

Even to Chan, it was obvious that he cared about his job. There was a sparkle in his eyes while he talked about it. Even though Chan really couldn’t understand why someone would feel that way about being a delivery boy, as he assumed that was what Jisung was doing, he appreciated his passion. “I get that, “ he said. “If you enjoy doing something, it’s worth the stress. But you should probably talk to your boss about your working hours.”

Jisung gave him a small smile. “It’s fine. I knew what I was getting myself into when I started this. I’m happy sacrificing my sleep for it.”

“I understand.” Chan felt the same way about being a hero. Yeah, it caused him lots of troubles, pain and sleepless nights, but actually getting to help people and living out his dream more than made up for it. “By the way, do we have a class together?” he changed the topic, studying Jisung’s face carefully for any hints of why it was so familiar. Even the way he spoke and acted reminded Chan of someone.

Jisung’s eyes went wide again before he laughed it off. “We have to same major, I think we’ve been in quite a few classes together before.”

“Ah, makes sense, “ Chan nodded. They might have worked on a project together before then, which would explain why he felt like they had talked to each other before. “Are you a junior as well?”

“Sophomore, actually. My best friend Changbin is a junior though, you might know him? He’s also in our major.” Jisung said, leaning in a bit. “Small, mostly wears dark clothes, looks kind of grumpy?”

The name also sparked recognition in Chan, even though the description didn’t. “I might? I’m sure I’ve seen him around, “ he said.

A hint of disappointment hushed over Jisung’s face as if he had expected a different answer. He quickly overplayed it, turning his attention back to Minho. “I should go now, I have to catch up on some readings, “ he said. “I’m sure we’ll see each other again soon.” Raising his cup to wave them goodbye, he made his way out of the shop.

Minho smiled after him. “Man, Han Jisung, “ he sighed, but there was fondness in his tone and eyes that really made it obvious how much he cared for the boy.

The rest of their coffee shop visit went by uneventfully. When it was their time to order, Chan tried to pay for Minho as well but he stubbornly refused. Afterwards, they walked to college together, filling the silence with meaningless small talk.

“This is it, “ Minho said when they arrived on campus and their time to part ways arrived. “To be honest, this was unexpectedly nice.”

Chan wholeheartedly agreed with that. In just about two hours, he had found that he and Minho got along surprisingly well. Hanging out with him had helped him free his mind as well as make progress with his decision. “Thank you so much for listening to me and your advice earlier. I really appreciate it.”

“I’m happy I could help, “ Minho said with a smile. “I hope you can figure out which path you want to take.”

“Yeah, me too.”

Two hours later, in the middle of class, his phone signalled the arrival of a new text message. And another one. And anther one.

Assuming that they were by his teammates, he quickly opened it, only to be surprised to see that it was a number that wasn’t saved to his contacts.

**Unknown  
** _I asked jeongin for ur number  
hope u don’t mind  
its lee minho btw  
I just remembered this poem I once read  
the road not taken by robert frost  
[screenshot_234]  
just wanted to share bc I think ull like :)_

Chan smiled at his phone as he read the lines on the picture Minho had sent. “ _That has made all the difference, “_ he mouthed along quietly.

**Chan**  
_thank you  
I think I know what to do now_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> please leave feedback!!! it really means the world to me and when i need motivation to write, i look thru the comments here. u can also leave feedback on my cc (orbitmyheart) if u prefer that!!! tell me abt ur theories, ur thoughts, which scenes u particularly like... anything u want really itd make me very happy <333


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